Chapter 11
Alex smiled to himself as he sauntered down the sidewalk towards the Crashdown. He wasn’t sure he had ever felt so happy but he decided not to over analyse things and just go with the flow.
Things had been dragging for months as he found himself preoccupied with what had been going on with Liz and Maria. As it looked like things were now returning to normal, or as normal as is possible having found out that aliens truly exist and live in Roswell, he was looking to get his life back on track without the previous distractions.
His Dad had even taken time to email him during the day to give him an update on how his grandparents were getting on. It had come as something of a shock to receive an email from his Dad but as his father explained it was easier to just drop a note to Alex knowing he would pick up the mail on one of the many occasions that he logged in to check his account throughout the day. If they had waited to speak to him via the phone it would have been the evening at the earliest before they would have been able to get hold of him. The fact that it was a Friday meant there was also a strong possibility that Alex would be out so that ended up being the deciding factor in the sending of the email.
The good news was that his grandmother’s condition had stabilised. The bad news was she hadn’t improved a great deal so it would be a week or two at least before they could return home. As Alex picked up his mail during his free period he was able to use the time to write back to his parents and inform them that things were going well at home, aside from the misunderstanding with the sheriff, and for them to take as much time as they needed to make sure his grandparents got the care they required.
Alex continued his walk to the Crashdown where he was due to meet up with Isabel, Max and Michael for an early dinner. Sadly he had been unable to join his friends at lunch as he had a prior commitment with the computer club. Of course today happened to be the one day in his school week where he didn’t have any shared classes with his friends so once he had said goodbye when they all split up for their first class this morning Alex had spent the rest of the day estranged from the group at the one time he wanted to spend all of his time with them.
He had so much to catch on with Liz and Maria it wasn’t funny. Not only were they the only three people in the world who could talk about having their very own alien friends he also wanted to speak to Liz, specifically, about being shot and healed in the space of a minute. He didn’t want to be callous and unfeeling about his best friends brush with death but the fact remained that what had taken place would, under any other circumstances, have been called a miracle.
All of that said he hadn’t even reached the monumental topic that he needed to speak to the girls about the most…Isabel. Aliens may have been living in Roswell. Liz may have been shot and then saved by extra-terrestrial powers. And Maria Deluca may have started to have feelings about a boy but all of that paled into insignificance when it came to the fact that Isabel Evans had been opening up. Not just opening up but opening up to him…Alex Whitman.
Alex suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. A look of terror slowly spread across his formally smiling face. What if part of Isabel’s powers was to read minds? Well…not so much read minds as know what someone was thinking. Which now that Alex thought about it was one and the same thing.
An even worse thought hit Alex. What did Isabel say her main power was? Dream walking? Then it hit Alex like a blow to the stomach, ‘I can go into peoples dreams’. That had been the exact phrase Isabel had used. “Oh God!” he said out loud. What if she had visited him?
Alex stood in the middle of the sidewalk shaking his head. He had been having all manner of dreams in recent weeks but knowing his luck, or lack of it, if Isabel had visited his dreams what were the chances that she would have caught him on one of the few occasions when he wasn’t dreaming about the two of them on a date?
Suddenly an attack of common sense kicked Alex out of his stupor. He’d seen Isabel every day for the last three days and she hadn’t made the slightest reference to any embarrassing dreams or uncomfortable moments. From what he could recall he hadn’t had any NC-17 dreams about the love of his life, not recently anyway. Alex mentally kicked himself. He had to stop creating problems where there were none. If he knew anything about Isabel it was that she was a strong minded, independent woman who was more than able to speak her mind. If she had something to say to Alex, especially about any appropriate dreams he was sure she would have told him.
His confidence restored Alex continued his journey to the Crashdown. He’d only found out about their dinner plans when Maria hunted him out towards the end of the school day. She only stayed a minute to tell him what was going to happen but she also managed to tell him to turn up ten minutes earlier than their three new friends just so the three old friends could have a couple of minutes to themselves before the others showed up.
Having new friends was great, having a special bond, that the alien secret gave them, was even better. However the fact remained that at the moment they were still two groups of three that were just getting to know one another. Some alone time with Liz and Maria would be greatly appreciated, even if it was only for a few minutes.
Alex pulled open the door to the café and stepped inside. This place held such fond memories for him that it was truly a home away from home. Over the last couple of months it had lost it’s special place in his heart due to the ongoing feud between him and his two best girls but now that was behind them it was like coming home…no pun intended.
“Alex!” Liz cried as she spotted her best friend.
Without any regard for what any onlookers might think Liz scurried around the counter and launched herself at her tall friend. She had enjoyed a tearful reunion with her missing friend that very morning but now they had past the reunion stage she was able to afford her friend a hug simply out of love…and the fact that she could if she wanted, she didn’t have to justify it to anyone.
Alex caught hold of Liz and pulled his petit friend into a hug. He missed his tactile relationship with his two best friends as a good hug spoke more than a dozen sentences ever could. A moment later the back door flew open as Maria came thundering through.
“Wait for me…wait for me.” She called as she barrelled up the walk way and into Alex’s arms. “Now squeeze.” She instructed as she was enveloped in both Liz and Alex’s arms.
After a few moments, and several surprised looks from some of the diners later, the friends broke apart. “It’s good to have you back.” Liz enthused.
“It’s good to be back.” Alex agreed. “Before we start I just wanted to say…”
Alex was interrupted before he had begun. “Alex, Liz and I have talked about this and decided the less said the better.” Maria explained. “You know why we did what we did but we also know why you did what you did. No one was in the wrong here and we were bother stuck in a lose – lose situation.”
“Well that’s…” Alex was interrupted again.
“She hasn’t finished yet Alex.” Liz whispered, lowering her head. “She’s been working on this speech all day.”
“Sorry.” Alex apologised for stopping Maria in mid flow. “Please carry on.”
“That’s quite alright.” Maria smiled as she worked out at which point she had been interrupted before continuing. “We know you love us and hopefully you know we live you so let’s put all of this misunderstanding behind us and get on with our lives.”
Alex stood and stared at Maria in silence.
“She’s finished.” Liz whispered as she leaned into Alex, covering her mouth with her hand in a vain attempt to hide her hushed words from Maria.
“Oh Right!” Alex burst into life. “Thank you for that Maria. That was very thoughtful of you and very welcome on my part.” Alex looked from one girl to the other. “I just have to say quickly that I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t add one quick ‘Sorry’ as I really must have looked like some kind of lunatic.”
“Alex!” Liz exclaimed. “We just said no apologies are necessary. We know you were only looking out for us and we love you all the more for it.”
“I’m sorry to interrupt this mini reunion.” Jeff Parker cut in on the friend’s discussion. “But I was hoping to serve some people with a little lovingly prepared food before it goes cold.”
“Sorry Dad.” “Sorry Mr Parker.” Both girls called out as they hurried back to the duties.
“Hey Alex.” Mr Parker greeted his daughter’s oldest male friend. “It’s good to see you back with the girls…I was starting to get a little worried. You know all the females gang up on me when you aren’t around.”
“I’m sorry Mr Parker.” Alex smiled at his little joke. “I’m back so you can rest easy. With the two of us they don’t stand a chance.”
“Good to hear it.” Mr Parker turned to head towards the cash register. “Sit yourself down Alex and the girls will be with you in a minute.”
As Mr Parker headed to the front of the restaurant Alex slide into a booth and settled down. Despite knowing his order off by heart he pulled out a menu to look at all the choices he wasn’t going to make. When it came to food Alex was of the ‘If it isn’t broke don’t fix it’ brigade. He knew what he liked and come hell or high water he was going to have it.
As a shadow cast across his menu Alex looked up expecting to see either Liz or Maria. The fact that Michael was standing beside his booth caught him out somewhat. “Hey Michael, take a seat.”
Michael shuffled his feet for a moment while he decided what to do. It wasn’t like he and Alex Whitman were miraculously best friends all of a sudden simply because he knew their secret. Having said that there weren’t too many people he would sit down to eat with and from what he had seen of Whitman he wasn’t that bad even if he did fawn over Isabel at every opportunity.
Michael moved to the bench opposite Alex and slid in. Fawning over Isabel wasn’t a good enough reason to not sit down for two reasons. Firstly Michael had seen many a boy lust after Isabel but that was just it…Alex didn’t lust after her he seemed more interested in her than anything else, which was something different entirely. Secondly if fawning was a reason to not sit with someone he would have spent the last few years sitting on his own. Max had mastered the art of mooning over someone and Liz had been the object of his efforts so he couldn’t judge Alex without judging Max.
“How was school?” Alex enquired before inwardly chastising himself for such poor conversational skills.
“Too long and too boring.” Michael replied flatly as he noticed Alex watching him intently. “You’re not going to be able to tell anything by just staring at me Whitman.”
Alex stiffened up in his chair, worried he had offended the young man. “I’m sorry. I was unaware I was staring and I know you are outwardly no different to me.” Alex lowered his voice for the last part. “It’s just the fact that you are amazing and I couldn’t help but be a little in awe of you.”
That was not the answer Michael was expecting. He was only used to conversing with Max and Isabel while the rest of the time he tried to keep himself to himself and just blend into the background. Having someone who he didn’t exactly dislike tell him that he was in awe of him put him on the back foot.
“So how are things going with Isabel?” Michael decided to try his hand at conversation himself. Judging by the look on Alex’s face it wasn’t the sort of question he was expecting. “I mean she doesn’t normally warm to people but she seems to be quite taken with you.”
“Really?” Alex asked a little too hopefully, causing Michael to almost smile. Alex gathered his thoughts. “I think she was just being nice to me…you know about the whole Liz and Maria thing. Probably felt sorry for me.” Alex added.
Michael shook his head. “I’ve seen Isabel do and say some strange things over the last couple days and I attribute them all to you. Having said that the one thing Isabel doesn’t do is feel sorry for people. After many years of having to cut people off before they can get close we are all pretty adept at holding people at arms length. If Isabel has started to open up to you I think she must have a very good reason.”
“Wow.” Alex let slip from his lips accidentally. He started to blush when he realised Michael had heard him. “Sorry…I didn’t mean for you to hear that. I’m just not used to hearing a beautiful young woman is interested in me.”
“What about Maria?” Michael asked a little too casually.
A broad grin slowly spread across Alex’s face and it was Michael’s turn to feel uncomfortable. He didn’t quite blush but he definitely started to fidget in his chair. It wasn’t lost on either boy that Alex was talking about beautiful women and Michael immediately thought of Maria…not that Alex disagreed.
“With Maria what you see is exactly what you get. She’s beautiful, loyal and honest. I count it as one of the luckiest days of my life when she came into my life.” Alex replied with a certain amount of pride in his voice. Suddenly his face became a little solemn. “The only thing to remember is she isn’t always as tough as she would have us believe.”
Without speaking a look from Michael was able to ask Alex to expand on his last comment.
“With her Dad having left it’s only been her and her Mom for quite some time now. I think that with the way he left she is constantly worried that those closest to her will leave one day.” Alex shook his head slightly. “She deserves to have someone love her and hold her, letting her know she will never be on her own.”
“Hey guys what can I get you?”
Both boys were hit by blind panic when they found a smiling Maria standing at their booth with her order pad at the ready.
With neither boy able to look her in the eye or able to speak Maria knew she had walked in on something. She placed her hands on her hips and look from one young man to the other. “Were you two talking about girls?” A grin slowly spread across her face.
“You caught us.” Alex lied, trying to cover what they were really talking about. “We’ll just have a plate of fries while we wait for Max and Isabel.”
“Drinks?”
Alex looked to Michael who was still unable to look directly at Maria. “What do you want Michael?” Alex asked.
“Cherry coke.” Michael asked in a hushed voice. “Please.” He added as an after thought.
Alex couldn’t help but smile. “So that’s one cherry coke and I’ll have my usual please Maria.”
“Coming right up.” Maria turned and headed off to place their order.
As the two boys sat in a reasonably comfortable silence while they waited for Maria to bring their drinks the bell over the door rang to signify the arrival of more customers. Michael and Alex looked and saw Max and Isabel come in and make their way over to the booth.
As they approached the booth Max, who was in front of Isabel, made a move to sit down next to Alex. Suddenly he felt a hefty shove in his back pushing him a foot or so past the nearside bench.
Max turned to look at an innocent looking Isabel. “Sorry Max. I slipped and nearly lost my footing but I’m alright now…thank you for asking.” And with that Isabel slid herself in beside Alex with a broad smile on her face.
Unseen by the new group of friends a young, clean cut man slid out from his seat near the front window, dropped some money on the counter to pay for his numerous cups of coffee and exited the Crashdown unseen. He made a point of looking back at the group as he walked by the bay window and off, out of sight.
Once he was out of the eye-line of the Crashdown he reached into his pocket and pulled out a black cell phone. He flipped it open and held down the speed dial button before holding the phone to his ear.
“Matthews!” A deep, stern voice barked out upon answering the phone.
“Colonel Matthews, its Sergeant Fletcher sir.” The young man replied in a subservient manner. “I think we have a problem.”
To be continued…
Into the Lion's Den (AI, CC / Teen) (Complete)
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StargazerUK
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StargazerUK
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 157
- Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 2:01 pm
- Location: London
Into the Lion's Den Pt12. A/I & CC PG-13 12-Apr-04
Chapter 12
“Problem? What kind of problem?” The colonel questioned aggressively. “Explain yourself!”
“Erm..sir, it’s as much a development as a problem.” The young sergeant stuttered in reply. “There’s a third boy on the scene.”
“What do you mean…a third boy? The senior officer pushed. “The reports said that a young man, possibly two, were involved in the incident that took place in the Crashdown that day. Now you are telling me there is a third one?”
“The boy is Alex Whitman. He was in the preliminary reports as a close friend of Liz Parker and Maria Deluca but he has dropped from their social circle in recent months. They’ve only been seen together sporadically and they couldn’t be described as close. That is why we have been concentrating on the Evans boy and Guerin.” Sergeant Fletcher explained. “Now that he is back on the scene we have even less of an idea than we did before of which boy exactly was involved in the so called incident.”
“Now you listen to me son.” The much older man pushed himself out of his chair into a standing position as his temperature rose. “I’ve told you before this isn’t a ‘so called incident’ as you have taken to describing it. The FEDS are all over this. You’re not the one who gets to sit in on these interdepartmental briefings but I am and I can tell you that whatever went on in that diner in mid September has the FBI jumping out of their seats. Most of them couldn’t find their ass with both hands but now that they are talking about bringing in the special unit this have gone from minimal interest to top of my agenda. The one thing you should know by now is that if I am interested…then you are interested. I’m no ones whipping boy so when I get told to take a step back and leave it to the professionals they can kiss my ass. I’ve not served my country and the United States Air force for thirty-four years to have some ‘Men in black’ wannabe ride rough shod over me. If it’s the last thing I do I’ll get to the bottom of what is going on in Roswell and I’ll do it before those son’s of bitches get a chance to fill out their expense reports…is that clear?”
“Yes sir…very.” The young man agreed. “What are your orders?”
“Get back here and we’ll have to come up with a new plan. With all the intelligence pointing to the two men we have had under surveillance we’ve been thrown a bit of a curve ball with this Whitman boy showing up.” The colonel sat back down now that his temper was starting to subside. “We may have to move things up a little and carry out the operation sooner than we planned.”
“Right girls.” Jeff Parker called. “You can take your thirty minute break to eat now if that’s OK? I need you back before the evening rush starts.”
“That’s fine Dad.” Liz confirmed. “We’ll be over with the others if you need us.”
Liz made her way over to their group of friends while Maria handed in their order for food directly to Jose. As Maria came back to the booth she found Alex in one corner with Isabel sitting just a little too close for it to be anything but intentional. On the other side to them there had been some movement since she was last there. It appeared that Michael had stepped out and allowed Max to slide in and then Liz. Michael had retaken a seat beside Liz but when he saw Maria approach he stood up.
“You sit here.” He almost ordered. When he saw the look on Maria’s face he realised he may have been a little more forthright than he planned. “I think I’m squashing Liz so if you sit here I will get a chair and sit on the end.” He added quickly.
“Beside me?” Maria questioned.
Michael frowned as he didn’t quite understand the question. Max had been coaching him on not immediately jumping down peoples throats when he didn’t like or understand something that had been said to him so he decided on a different tack…simple honesty. “Yes beside you.” He nodded.
When Maria stood perfectly still for a moment and just looked at him he thought he had got it wrong again. Suddenly she smiled and he realised maybe he hadn’t been wrong after all. When the petit blond replied “Good.” and sat down he wasn’t sure what he felt. Could it have been happiness?
Michael grabbed a chair and sat down at the end of the table. Everyone sat in silence for a minute as no one knew what to say. It fell to Liz to break the silence.
“So Alex how was school?” Liz questioned. “We didn’t get to see you all day.”
Alex had to try and stop himself from feeling self-conscious when not only did everyone’s attention turn to him as they waited on a reply to Liz’s question but he could see out of the corner of his eye that Isabel was paying special attention to him, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“It was fine thanks Liz.” Alex smiled. “I’ll have to be honest and say I found my mind wandering from time to time because of my new found knowledge but other than that it was fine.” He confirmed. “I was sorry I didn’t get a chance to have lunch with you guys but I had a prior engagement that I couldn’t get out of.”
“So were we.” Michael added, causing everyone to now turn to him. “I mean Isabel didn’t stop talking about you.”
Alex’s head snapped round to look at Isabel and the look of mortification on her normally perfect face was a picture to behold. It became apparent that Isabel was torn between huge discomfort at Alex knowing her actions in his absence and growing anger towards Michael for speaking out of turn.
When Isabel turned her gaze to Michael she saw the last thing she had been expecting, I look of genuine remorse. Then when he mouthed the word sorry her anger had disappeared faster than it had arrived. She was aware that Max and Michael had been trying to work on Michael’s social skills. Just as she was mortified that Michael had let Alex know how she was feeling about him she knew he, in turn, would be mortified at the fact that Max had told her about the little sessions the two brothers had been having.
When it became clear that they were turning into a group of friends it also became clear, to Michael, that he was starting to have feelings for Maria. That being said every time he opened him mouth around her he always seemed to say the wrong thing so he had taken the drastic step of asking Max to coach him on social matters.
It was now apparent that Michael’s inappropriate comment was an attempt on his behalf to take part in the conversation. How could she be angry at him for that? The answer was she couldn’t. She loved Michael as the brother he was to her but she loved him even more for trying to better himself, especially if he had feelings for Maria.
“Thank you Michael, for letting Alex know I was talking about him.” Isabel put on a brave smile and looked towards Alex. “Now he’ll get all confident and think I am interested in him.”
“Don’t worry Isabel.” Maria cut in. “We’ve already told him that.”
That comment caused everyone to start laughing and it broke the tension. Before there was a chance of anymore revelations the food turned up and everyone settled down to casual conversation while they ate their meals.
Isabel made a point of winking at Michael at the earliest opportunity to let him know all was forgiven. It made her smile when she saw her brother visibly relax when she did that. Also Isabel wasn’t certain if she was imagining it but she had a sense that after Michael’s comment Alex had closed the already small gap between them as they ate their food. As they sat there she could feel Alex’s leg brush up against hers. Initially when it happened he sort of pulled away but when Isabel stood her ground and didn’t move it seemed his confidence grew and they ended up in constant physical contact, which neither party disliked.
After they had eaten their food the friends stayed to chat and socialise. Liz and Maria had to return to work but at every opportunity they sat with their friends and took part in the conversation. After a couple of hours it looked like their time together was coming to an end as Max and Michael started to get things ready for their impending departure.
“Are you guys off?” Liz asked as she approached the group.
Max turned and looked mournfully at the stunning brunette. “Sadly yes. I’ve got history homework to do as well as a couple of other things to catch up on. My logic is that if I get them done tonight I have the rest of the weekend off.”
“Don’t tell me you have history homework?” Maria directed her comment at Michael as she came up to join the group.
“Who knows?” Michael shrugged.
“Of course.” Maria said nodding. “You have to be in class to be assigned homework.”
Liz glanced at Isabel and was surprised to see the domineering young woman look torn. While trying not to make it obvious she continued to watch as Isabel turned to Alex.
“Are you coming home?” She asked softly
Alex’s heart soared as he saw the hopeful look on Isabel’s face. He knew his next comment would put an end to her buoyant mood. “Actually I was going to stay for a little while longer.”
Isabel tried hard to hide her disappointment but failed miserably.
“I’ll be back soon though.” Alex offered a glimmer of hope while looking at his watch. “It’s still early so if you are still up when I get back we can have some coffee or a hot chocolate.”
“I’d like that.” Isabel nodded. “I’ll see you soon then.”
With that Isabel climbed out from the booth and joined her brothers as they moved towards the door. The bill had already been paid so once Liz and Maria had seen their friends out they headed back to join Alex.
“Alex, my Dad has let us finish early as things are quiet so we thought about tubs of ice cream with lots of chocolate sauce, how does that sound?” Liz asked.
Before Alex had a chance to answer Maria interrupted. “Unless you need to get home to the little woman.”
Alex let out a little chuckle and shook his head as he slid out from his seat. “Maria I have missed you so much. I can think of many ways to describe Isabel but little woman wasn’t one of them.”
“I bet you can.” Maria continued her ribbing of Alex as the three friends made their way out the back. “How about wonder woman? No. Supergirl? No. I know…your Amazonian queen.”
“Thanks Maria.” Alex laughed, putting a long arm around his petit but feisty friend as they climbed the stairs to the Parker residence. “Isabel is many things but she isn’t my anything, whether it is wonder woman or Amazonian queen.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure about that Alex.” Liz joined in. “She seems pretty keen.”
Alex made his way down to Liz’s room and then out onto her roof area where she had numerous chairs and sun beds laid out. As he lowered himself down onto one of the beds so he could stretch out under the late evening sky Alex heard the two girls coming out to join him carrying various tubs of ice cream, spoons and a large bottle of chocolate sauce.
Once they had allotted the ice cream, handed out the spoons and applied the sauce they all relaxed back in their various chairs and beds to settle down. With much eating of ice cream the friends fell into silence for a couple of minutes.
“We missed you.” Liz suddenly broke the peace with her heart felt comment.
Alex straightened himself up a little at Liz’s comment so he was no longer lying down but turned to face his friends. “I know.” He nodded. “I missed you too but I didn’t know what else to do.”
“We know.” Maria said mournfully. She looked at Liz and then back at Alex. “We’ll never hide anything from you again…ever.”
Alex smiled softly when he could see Liz nodding at Maria’s statement. “And I’ll trust my best friend’s judgement and allow them to make their own decisions without me second guessing them.”
Again they fell into a comfortable silence. With those few, simple comments they had mended anything that might have needed fixing.
“So let’s talk about Isabel.” Liz smiled.
“Yes.” Alex enthused. “Let’s.”
Both girls laughed at Alex’s reply. He was obviously as keen as they were to talk about the tall, beautiful alien now that she had shown some kind of interest in him.
“So how is it living with the girl of your dreams?” Maria began.
“Both good and bad. “ Alex replied. “It’s good because I get to see a lot more of her and be closer to her than I could have ever imagined. It’s bad because I get to see a lot more of her and be closer to her than I could have ever imagined.”
“You can’t have it both ways Alex.” Liz cut in, still laughing at his explanation.
“I know.” Alex smiled. “It’s just I live in constant fear of blushing myself to death. Even if she just looks at me I feel the flush creeping up my neck. Before I could pass her by in school and other than a little flutter in my heart that was it. Now I get a blood rush…” Alex turned to look at Maria specifically. “To my head before you say anything Maria. And I end up feeling unsteady on my feet.”
“Well I think it works both ways Alex.” Liz replied. “I think all of us have noticed how different Isabel is around you, even the boys.”
“She was definitely taking up some of your personal space during dinner.” Maria added. “And she looked pretty disappointed when you said you were staying behind for awhile.”
“I think I am just something new for her to toy with.” Alex dropped his head. “I’m pretty sure she doesn’t see me as a threat. She’s probably fed up of boys simply trying to maul her and is looking for someone to talk to and socialise with.”
Liz frowned. “Alex, in case you are unsure, what you just described is what girls might look for in a boyfriend. It’s not unheard of for girls to be on the lookout for something just physical but it isn’t the main thing they look for in a boyfriend, its trust and the feeling of being comfortable. We look for a friend first and foremost, and then we can decide if we want more.”
“I’m sure Isabel is sick and tired of being seen as a piece of eye candy on someone’s arm.” Maria joined in. “A relationship is a two way street and she will want something out of it as well.”
Alex listened to his friends wide eyed. “So what do I do?”
“Exactly what you have been doing.” Liz replied. “Treat her in the same way you treat us…with love and respect.”
“But just include a little passion.” Maria added.
“Maria!” Liz exclaimed. “We’ve just told him that Isabel won’t want someone to maul her or make her feel uncomfortable.”
“I know Liz.” Maria agreed. “But if he doesn’t add a little excitement he’ll just end up being friends when he wants more.”
“Being friends isn’t a bad thing.” Liz offered.
“You’re right Liz it isn’t.” Maria turned her attention to Alex. “If all you ever end up being with Isabel is friends than that isn’t a bad thing in my opinion. If you want more than friends then you are just going to have to see how things play out. From what we have seen Isabel is pretty guarded so if you leap at her you might frighten her off. Wait for a sign and then you’ll know how to act.”
“What sort of sign?” Alex questioned. “Would a kiss be considered a sign?”
“On the lips?” Maria questioned. When Alex nodded Maria continued. “Yes a kiss on the lips is a pretty good sign.”
Alex smiled. “In that case I have something to tell you.”
To be continued…
“Problem? What kind of problem?” The colonel questioned aggressively. “Explain yourself!”
“Erm..sir, it’s as much a development as a problem.” The young sergeant stuttered in reply. “There’s a third boy on the scene.”
“What do you mean…a third boy? The senior officer pushed. “The reports said that a young man, possibly two, were involved in the incident that took place in the Crashdown that day. Now you are telling me there is a third one?”
“The boy is Alex Whitman. He was in the preliminary reports as a close friend of Liz Parker and Maria Deluca but he has dropped from their social circle in recent months. They’ve only been seen together sporadically and they couldn’t be described as close. That is why we have been concentrating on the Evans boy and Guerin.” Sergeant Fletcher explained. “Now that he is back on the scene we have even less of an idea than we did before of which boy exactly was involved in the so called incident.”
“Now you listen to me son.” The much older man pushed himself out of his chair into a standing position as his temperature rose. “I’ve told you before this isn’t a ‘so called incident’ as you have taken to describing it. The FEDS are all over this. You’re not the one who gets to sit in on these interdepartmental briefings but I am and I can tell you that whatever went on in that diner in mid September has the FBI jumping out of their seats. Most of them couldn’t find their ass with both hands but now that they are talking about bringing in the special unit this have gone from minimal interest to top of my agenda. The one thing you should know by now is that if I am interested…then you are interested. I’m no ones whipping boy so when I get told to take a step back and leave it to the professionals they can kiss my ass. I’ve not served my country and the United States Air force for thirty-four years to have some ‘Men in black’ wannabe ride rough shod over me. If it’s the last thing I do I’ll get to the bottom of what is going on in Roswell and I’ll do it before those son’s of bitches get a chance to fill out their expense reports…is that clear?”
“Yes sir…very.” The young man agreed. “What are your orders?”
“Get back here and we’ll have to come up with a new plan. With all the intelligence pointing to the two men we have had under surveillance we’ve been thrown a bit of a curve ball with this Whitman boy showing up.” The colonel sat back down now that his temper was starting to subside. “We may have to move things up a little and carry out the operation sooner than we planned.”
“Right girls.” Jeff Parker called. “You can take your thirty minute break to eat now if that’s OK? I need you back before the evening rush starts.”
“That’s fine Dad.” Liz confirmed. “We’ll be over with the others if you need us.”
Liz made her way over to their group of friends while Maria handed in their order for food directly to Jose. As Maria came back to the booth she found Alex in one corner with Isabel sitting just a little too close for it to be anything but intentional. On the other side to them there had been some movement since she was last there. It appeared that Michael had stepped out and allowed Max to slide in and then Liz. Michael had retaken a seat beside Liz but when he saw Maria approach he stood up.
“You sit here.” He almost ordered. When he saw the look on Maria’s face he realised he may have been a little more forthright than he planned. “I think I’m squashing Liz so if you sit here I will get a chair and sit on the end.” He added quickly.
“Beside me?” Maria questioned.
Michael frowned as he didn’t quite understand the question. Max had been coaching him on not immediately jumping down peoples throats when he didn’t like or understand something that had been said to him so he decided on a different tack…simple honesty. “Yes beside you.” He nodded.
When Maria stood perfectly still for a moment and just looked at him he thought he had got it wrong again. Suddenly she smiled and he realised maybe he hadn’t been wrong after all. When the petit blond replied “Good.” and sat down he wasn’t sure what he felt. Could it have been happiness?
Michael grabbed a chair and sat down at the end of the table. Everyone sat in silence for a minute as no one knew what to say. It fell to Liz to break the silence.
“So Alex how was school?” Liz questioned. “We didn’t get to see you all day.”
Alex had to try and stop himself from feeling self-conscious when not only did everyone’s attention turn to him as they waited on a reply to Liz’s question but he could see out of the corner of his eye that Isabel was paying special attention to him, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“It was fine thanks Liz.” Alex smiled. “I’ll have to be honest and say I found my mind wandering from time to time because of my new found knowledge but other than that it was fine.” He confirmed. “I was sorry I didn’t get a chance to have lunch with you guys but I had a prior engagement that I couldn’t get out of.”
“So were we.” Michael added, causing everyone to now turn to him. “I mean Isabel didn’t stop talking about you.”
Alex’s head snapped round to look at Isabel and the look of mortification on her normally perfect face was a picture to behold. It became apparent that Isabel was torn between huge discomfort at Alex knowing her actions in his absence and growing anger towards Michael for speaking out of turn.
When Isabel turned her gaze to Michael she saw the last thing she had been expecting, I look of genuine remorse. Then when he mouthed the word sorry her anger had disappeared faster than it had arrived. She was aware that Max and Michael had been trying to work on Michael’s social skills. Just as she was mortified that Michael had let Alex know how she was feeling about him she knew he, in turn, would be mortified at the fact that Max had told her about the little sessions the two brothers had been having.
When it became clear that they were turning into a group of friends it also became clear, to Michael, that he was starting to have feelings for Maria. That being said every time he opened him mouth around her he always seemed to say the wrong thing so he had taken the drastic step of asking Max to coach him on social matters.
It was now apparent that Michael’s inappropriate comment was an attempt on his behalf to take part in the conversation. How could she be angry at him for that? The answer was she couldn’t. She loved Michael as the brother he was to her but she loved him even more for trying to better himself, especially if he had feelings for Maria.
“Thank you Michael, for letting Alex know I was talking about him.” Isabel put on a brave smile and looked towards Alex. “Now he’ll get all confident and think I am interested in him.”
“Don’t worry Isabel.” Maria cut in. “We’ve already told him that.”
That comment caused everyone to start laughing and it broke the tension. Before there was a chance of anymore revelations the food turned up and everyone settled down to casual conversation while they ate their meals.
Isabel made a point of winking at Michael at the earliest opportunity to let him know all was forgiven. It made her smile when she saw her brother visibly relax when she did that. Also Isabel wasn’t certain if she was imagining it but she had a sense that after Michael’s comment Alex had closed the already small gap between them as they ate their food. As they sat there she could feel Alex’s leg brush up against hers. Initially when it happened he sort of pulled away but when Isabel stood her ground and didn’t move it seemed his confidence grew and they ended up in constant physical contact, which neither party disliked.
After they had eaten their food the friends stayed to chat and socialise. Liz and Maria had to return to work but at every opportunity they sat with their friends and took part in the conversation. After a couple of hours it looked like their time together was coming to an end as Max and Michael started to get things ready for their impending departure.
“Are you guys off?” Liz asked as she approached the group.
Max turned and looked mournfully at the stunning brunette. “Sadly yes. I’ve got history homework to do as well as a couple of other things to catch up on. My logic is that if I get them done tonight I have the rest of the weekend off.”
“Don’t tell me you have history homework?” Maria directed her comment at Michael as she came up to join the group.
“Who knows?” Michael shrugged.
“Of course.” Maria said nodding. “You have to be in class to be assigned homework.”
Liz glanced at Isabel and was surprised to see the domineering young woman look torn. While trying not to make it obvious she continued to watch as Isabel turned to Alex.
“Are you coming home?” She asked softly
Alex’s heart soared as he saw the hopeful look on Isabel’s face. He knew his next comment would put an end to her buoyant mood. “Actually I was going to stay for a little while longer.”
Isabel tried hard to hide her disappointment but failed miserably.
“I’ll be back soon though.” Alex offered a glimmer of hope while looking at his watch. “It’s still early so if you are still up when I get back we can have some coffee or a hot chocolate.”
“I’d like that.” Isabel nodded. “I’ll see you soon then.”
With that Isabel climbed out from the booth and joined her brothers as they moved towards the door. The bill had already been paid so once Liz and Maria had seen their friends out they headed back to join Alex.
“Alex, my Dad has let us finish early as things are quiet so we thought about tubs of ice cream with lots of chocolate sauce, how does that sound?” Liz asked.
Before Alex had a chance to answer Maria interrupted. “Unless you need to get home to the little woman.”
Alex let out a little chuckle and shook his head as he slid out from his seat. “Maria I have missed you so much. I can think of many ways to describe Isabel but little woman wasn’t one of them.”
“I bet you can.” Maria continued her ribbing of Alex as the three friends made their way out the back. “How about wonder woman? No. Supergirl? No. I know…your Amazonian queen.”
“Thanks Maria.” Alex laughed, putting a long arm around his petit but feisty friend as they climbed the stairs to the Parker residence. “Isabel is many things but she isn’t my anything, whether it is wonder woman or Amazonian queen.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure about that Alex.” Liz joined in. “She seems pretty keen.”
Alex made his way down to Liz’s room and then out onto her roof area where she had numerous chairs and sun beds laid out. As he lowered himself down onto one of the beds so he could stretch out under the late evening sky Alex heard the two girls coming out to join him carrying various tubs of ice cream, spoons and a large bottle of chocolate sauce.
Once they had allotted the ice cream, handed out the spoons and applied the sauce they all relaxed back in their various chairs and beds to settle down. With much eating of ice cream the friends fell into silence for a couple of minutes.
“We missed you.” Liz suddenly broke the peace with her heart felt comment.
Alex straightened himself up a little at Liz’s comment so he was no longer lying down but turned to face his friends. “I know.” He nodded. “I missed you too but I didn’t know what else to do.”
“We know.” Maria said mournfully. She looked at Liz and then back at Alex. “We’ll never hide anything from you again…ever.”
Alex smiled softly when he could see Liz nodding at Maria’s statement. “And I’ll trust my best friend’s judgement and allow them to make their own decisions without me second guessing them.”
Again they fell into a comfortable silence. With those few, simple comments they had mended anything that might have needed fixing.
“So let’s talk about Isabel.” Liz smiled.
“Yes.” Alex enthused. “Let’s.”
Both girls laughed at Alex’s reply. He was obviously as keen as they were to talk about the tall, beautiful alien now that she had shown some kind of interest in him.
“So how is it living with the girl of your dreams?” Maria began.
“Both good and bad. “ Alex replied. “It’s good because I get to see a lot more of her and be closer to her than I could have ever imagined. It’s bad because I get to see a lot more of her and be closer to her than I could have ever imagined.”
“You can’t have it both ways Alex.” Liz cut in, still laughing at his explanation.
“I know.” Alex smiled. “It’s just I live in constant fear of blushing myself to death. Even if she just looks at me I feel the flush creeping up my neck. Before I could pass her by in school and other than a little flutter in my heart that was it. Now I get a blood rush…” Alex turned to look at Maria specifically. “To my head before you say anything Maria. And I end up feeling unsteady on my feet.”
“Well I think it works both ways Alex.” Liz replied. “I think all of us have noticed how different Isabel is around you, even the boys.”
“She was definitely taking up some of your personal space during dinner.” Maria added. “And she looked pretty disappointed when you said you were staying behind for awhile.”
“I think I am just something new for her to toy with.” Alex dropped his head. “I’m pretty sure she doesn’t see me as a threat. She’s probably fed up of boys simply trying to maul her and is looking for someone to talk to and socialise with.”
Liz frowned. “Alex, in case you are unsure, what you just described is what girls might look for in a boyfriend. It’s not unheard of for girls to be on the lookout for something just physical but it isn’t the main thing they look for in a boyfriend, its trust and the feeling of being comfortable. We look for a friend first and foremost, and then we can decide if we want more.”
“I’m sure Isabel is sick and tired of being seen as a piece of eye candy on someone’s arm.” Maria joined in. “A relationship is a two way street and she will want something out of it as well.”
Alex listened to his friends wide eyed. “So what do I do?”
“Exactly what you have been doing.” Liz replied. “Treat her in the same way you treat us…with love and respect.”
“But just include a little passion.” Maria added.
“Maria!” Liz exclaimed. “We’ve just told him that Isabel won’t want someone to maul her or make her feel uncomfortable.”
“I know Liz.” Maria agreed. “But if he doesn’t add a little excitement he’ll just end up being friends when he wants more.”
“Being friends isn’t a bad thing.” Liz offered.
“You’re right Liz it isn’t.” Maria turned her attention to Alex. “If all you ever end up being with Isabel is friends than that isn’t a bad thing in my opinion. If you want more than friends then you are just going to have to see how things play out. From what we have seen Isabel is pretty guarded so if you leap at her you might frighten her off. Wait for a sign and then you’ll know how to act.”
“What sort of sign?” Alex questioned. “Would a kiss be considered a sign?”
“On the lips?” Maria questioned. When Alex nodded Maria continued. “Yes a kiss on the lips is a pretty good sign.”
Alex smiled. “In that case I have something to tell you.”
To be continued…
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StargazerUK
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Into the Lion's Den Pt13. A/I & C/C 19-Apr-04
Chapter 13
“The two of you kissed?” Maria almost shrieked.
“Yes.” Alex nodded while smiling broadly. “In fact Isabel kissed me, which was my point.”
“Alex, if you’re telling us Isabel kissed you I think it is safe to say she is interested in you.” Liz confirmed. “I would never have imagined Isabel was the type...” Seeing the hurt look on Alex’s face Liz expanded on her comment. “I don’t mean she isn’t the type to kiss you, I mean she’s infamous around school for dating all the popular boys but then casting them aside like yesterdays news before any of them can get close. If she is interested in you, which I think she obviously is after her actions, this isn’t just big news…it’s huge!”
“So what happened?” Maria questioned. “How did it come about?”
Alex sat for a moment before shrugging nonchalantly. “We’d been chatting late last night and Isabel had just told me about their secret. When she had finished explaining a few things she got up to leave and I followed her to the door to see her out.”
“And?” Maria pressed.
“And just as she was stepping out of the room she reached forward, grabbed me and gave me a kiss on the lips before leaving.” Alex continued.
“Didn’t either of you say anything.” Liz wasn’t as animated as Maria but she wanted details just the same.
“I asked her why she did it.” Alex could feel his now customary blush creeping up his neck. “And Isabel said it was because I wouldn’t.”
“I can’t believe this.” Maria enthused. “I know Liz already said it but this is huge!”
“You don’t think she is just messing with me or using me do you?” Alex’s lack of confidence began to raise its ugly head. “In the little time that I have known her I would never believe it of her but it is rather sudden and I am not accustomed to my dreams coming true.”
Maria started to shake her head vigorously. “If she is messing you about or toying with you it will be the last thing she ever does. Sheriff or no Sheriff, she’ll have more to be scared of than being taken away if she hurts you.”
“Maria calm down.” Liz turned to Alex. “And Alex, stop selling yourself short. I would have thought it was reasonably clear what is going on here.”
With both Maria and Alex frowning at her in bemusement Liz knew she had better explain herself. “None of us here can claim to understand what the three aliens have been through or go through ever single day. We now know that part of being who they are involves keeping their secret safe. That was all shot to hell the day Max saved me.”
Liz turned to look at Alex specifically. “Alex you may not be aware but Isabel fought tooth and nail to let you in on what is going on. It wasn’t so much that the boys didn’t want to tell you, more that they don’t want to tell anyone. Isabel has obviously formed some kind of connection with you and as soon as that happened it became clear she wanted to let you in on their secret.”
“So you think this is real?” Alex questioned. “You don’t think she is messing with me.”
Liz shook her head. “In fact I would say it is the complete opposite, just think about it. They have probably grown up thinking that no one will ever know their secret…ever know the real them. Now that their secret is out, whether they like it or not, their lives will change.”
“You have to understand what Isabel is going through, what is happening from her point of view.” Liz tried to explain. “The reason Isabel kissed you the way she did was probably in part to do with the fact that she may have thought she would never get the opportunity to get close to anyone other than Max or Michael. As they are her brothers it’s quite feasible that she imagined going through life without ever having a close relationship with a member of the opposite sex. Then you come along, lovely as you are, only to blow her world wide apart by not only being honest and trust worthy but you also accept her for who and what she is. You don’t shy away from her or judge her. It’s no wonder she kissed you, in fact it makes perfect sense.”
“It does?” Alex questioned before he could censor himself. “I mean it does.” He said, more to convince himself than the girls.
Liz lifted herself from her chair and moved to join Alex, sitting beside him. “Alex, you do know that sometimes, when they kiss, a bond can be formed and intimate details can be passed between one another?”
“What?” Alex exclaimed.
Liz glanced at Maria in surprise and then back at Alex. “Didn’t Isabel tell you? Didn’t you see anything when you kissed?”
“Isabel didn’t have time to go into too much detail as it was getting late.” Alex explained. “As for the other thing I thought I was imagining it…I put it down to feeling light-headed.”
“So you did see something?” Maria pressed.
“Well…yes.” Alex admitted. “It wasn’t as much what I saw but what I felt. We only kissed for a brief second but I thought I saw a couple of images of me flashing into my mind. I thought at the time it was odd as the images appeared to be me looking at myself, like an out of body experience.”
Liz smiled. “The reason it was so odd and why you felt funny was because the images you saw weren’t from you, they were from Isabel. It wasn’t an out of body experience…it was how you look through Isabel’s eyes.”
“What about the feelings I felt?” Alex continued. “Were they from Isabel too?”
“What did you feel?” Maria asked gently.
Alex dropped his head.
“Alex, what’s wrong?” Both girls were concerned by the sudden change in Alex’s demeanour.
“I’ve just realised.” Alex slowly raised his head. “We’re talking about Isabel’s inner most thoughts…her deepest feelings. If the connection is how you described it they would be unable to hide their true feelings. We’d be able to know exactly what is going on inside of them.”
“We know.” Maria looked sombre. “We’re just finding out that it’s not easy being them.”
Liz placed her hand over one of Alex’s. “Alex, we weren’t looking to pry. We didn’t want to know anything private about Isabel. We were only trying to help you understand what is going on, with both them and us.”
“I know Liz.” Alex smiled softly at his petit friend. “It’s just that I suddenly realised how big a deal all this is. The things I have learnt about them so far have simply blown my mind. Add what I have just discovered about connections and flashes…I think I need to lie down.”
Maria came over to join her two friends that were sitting on the sun bed, placing an arm around Alex’s shoulder. “If you thought life was complicated enough just being a teenager then I think you have a big surprise coming when you fully understand what it is like to be a fully paid up member of the ‘I know an alien’ fan club.”
That comment caused all three friends to smile. Alex stood up, followed by the two girls.
“Are you going?” Liz asked softly.
Alex pulled Liz into a hug. “I think I need to go and talk to Isabel.” Alex released Liz and step forward to hug Maria. As he stepped back he looked at both his girls. “You don’t mind do you?”
“What?” Maria tried to look hurt. “That you are replacing us with a tall, beautiful blond who not only looks out of his world but is out of this world?”
“Exactly.” Alex grinned before looking a little more serious. “And I am sure I won’t catch the pair of you lusting after Max and Michael in the coming weeks.”
“Lusting? Us?” Liz had a mischievous smile on her lips. “As if we would.” With that Liz stepped beside Maria and they each wrapped an arm round each other so they stood side by side looking at Alex.
“I don’t know what those two boys have been through but I am not sure they are prepared for having you two in their lives.” Alex joked.
“They have special powers.” Liz added defensively.
“It still makes it an unfair fight.” Maria affirmed.
“You’re right.” Liz conceded with a broad smile. “They don’t stand a chance.”
Alex opened the front door quietly and stepped inside. It was still only 9pm so it wasn’t exactly late but he wanted to make sure he didn’t disturb anyone else who was in the house.
He’d taken his time walking back to allow himself some time to think about what he had learned in the last 24hrs. More than that he wanted to let Isabel know how flattered he was that she had fought so hard to let him in on their secret. He was also conscious of not making a mountain out of a mole hill so he wouldn’t labour the point.
As he walked towards the kitchen he could see the light was on. It wasn’t until he turned and entered the kitchen that he found Isabel sitting at the table with her back towards him.
Alex stood stock still for a moment. He knew he was being all soppy and unmanly when it came to Isabel but he just needed a moment to breathe in her beauty. The fact that he was looking at her from the back wasn’t really the point. If the truth be told it wasn’t her outward appearance that he was so besotted by.
For many years now Alex had been convinced there was more to Isabel than just an attractive smile and a good dress sense. Not that he wanted to tar all attractive, well dressed people with the same brush but he had always been convinced there were hidden depths to Isabel and those convictions had only been reaffirmed in recent days.
He had discovered that not only had she been forced to keep this amazing secret for the last ten years but she had also had to live with the constant fear of being found out and carted off to who knows where.
“Alex, are you coming in or do you want me to bring you a chair?”
Alex blinked numerous times as he struggled to work out how Isabel knew not only that he was there but also how she knew it was him and not someone else, especially as she still had her back to him.
Isabel turned to look at Alex and greeted him with a broad smile.
“How did you know I was there?” Alex walked towards the table. “And how did you know it was me?” Alex leaned in towards Isabel and whispered. “Do you have special hearing?”
Isabel laughed at both Alex’s question and the look of wonder on his face when he asked it. “Alex, we’re not superheros.” Isabel giggled. “I heard the front door close, despite how quiet you were being, and Max is upstairs.”
“What about your parents?” Alex sat down on a chair opposite Isabel. “Where are they?”
Isabel closed the magazine she had been reading when Alex came in. “Our parents are out of town for the night.” When her companion raised his eyebrows in question at her statement she continued. “As both our parents are lawyers they sometimes get stuck at work for long periods of time depending on how a case is going or whereabouts in a case they actually are. On a rare occasion, usually for big cases, they stay in a motel rather than having to drive backwards and forwards from home to work.”
“And they don’t mind leaving the two of you on your own at home?” Alex questioned. “I know I am one to talk as my parents often leave me and they are out of town as we speak.”
“Don’t be silly Alex.” Isabel shook her head. “What your parents are doing is both noble and loving, it’s not like they have abandoned you.”
“I know.” Alex nodded. “I just didn’t want you to think me a hypocrite.”
“Not likely.” Isabel smiled and then dropped her gaze as she suddenly found her hands very interesting.
“Actually I’m glad you are here.” Alex began, his words causing Isabel to lift her eyes. “I was hoping to have a little talk.”
“Really?” Isabel wasn’t sure if she liked the sound of this. “Do you have more questions?”
“I do.” Alex confirmed. “But that isn’t what I wanted to talk about. They can wait for another day…I don’t want to hound you.”
Isabel felt her heart flutter as she recognised the concern that was evident in his voice. “What is it you wanted to talk about?”
“I’ve just been talking to Liz and Maria and they told me one or two bits of information that I didn’t know.” Alex continued.
Isabel dropped her gaze again. Unsure if she was in for another embarrassing moment, similar to the one Michael put her through at dinner, she readied herself for anything.
“I wanted to say thank you.”
Isabel’s head snapped up upon hearing Alex’s tender words. “What?”
Alex stopped for a moment, unsure what was ambiguous about ‘Thank you’. “I said I wanted to say thank you. I promise you we weren’t gossiping about you or telling tales out of school but the girls did tell me that you fought hard to be able to tell me your secret. I just wanted to say how much I appreciate what you did…I know it must have taken a lot for you to do it.”
“It was nothing.” Isabel shrugged.
“I doubt that.” Alex contradicted Isabel. “I can only imagine how much you went through but thanks to you I have been able to sort things out with Liz and Maria and get out relationship back on track.”
“I’m glad I could help.” Isabel offered with a slightly embarrassed smile.
“So what’s it to be?” Alex asked out of the blue.
It was Isabel’s turn to be stumped. “Sorry?”
“Coffee or hot chocolate?” Alex asked as he stood up from the table. “I promised you a drink earlier.”
Isabel sighed with relief once she realised what he was asking. “Hot Chocolate sounds nice. I haven’t had one of them in ages.”
Isabel watched in amazement as Alex busied himself around the kitchen. She even offered to help at one stage as Alex flew through the cupboards looking for what he needed but he insisted on Isabel putting her feet up while he waited on her. This was something she could definitely get used to.
After several minutes of frantic action in the kitchen Alex returned to the table carrying two large cups of hot chocolate. Having place one cup in front of Isabel he moved back round the table and took a seat across from his beautiful companion. “Let me know it if isn’t very nice. My mom’s the hot chocolate expert in our house and I never seem to be able to get it as perfect as she always manages.”
Isabel took a sip from her cup and was pleasantly surprised by the taste, given Alex’s build up. “It’s lovely Alex. I don’t know how much more perfect your mom could make it but on a scale of one to ten I would say this is a nine.”
“Nine?” Alex feigned wounded pride.
“If it had marshmallows it would be a definite ten but as we don’t have any I think you did wonderfully well with what you had to work with.” Isabel added quickly.
Both youngsters were aware that they were talking about nothing in particular, side stepping any deep and meaningful conversation for fear of ruining their time together. That plan soon failed as they both ran out of anything to say as they fell into a prolonged silence.
“It can’t have been easy.” Alex suddenly spoke up. “Being special the way you are…it can’t have been easy.” He repeated.
Isabel dropped her head for a moment while trying to hide her quickening pulse. She was finding more and more ways to fall for Alex and the fact that he kept referring to her as special was only hastening her fall. “Why do you keep calling me special?” Isabel’s almost sounded annoyed when she asked her question. It became clear that her trust issues had picked now to surface.
Alex shrugged, ignoring the tone in her voice. “Because that is what you are. If I am deemed normal does that make you abnormal because you are different? Maybe it does.” Alex answered his own question but continued. “But abnormal has a horrible tone to it. I think if I am going to be normal then I prefer to think of you as special, which you are.”
Alex could see Isabel watching his every move, listening to every word intently. He wanted to allay any fears or misconceptions she might be having so he spoke up. “In case you are wondering I’m not looking to breakdown the walls to castle Isabel and storm the ramparts, attempting to have my wicked way with you.” He joked. “I have no ulterior motive for being here.”
“You don’t?” Isabel asked ruefully before she corrected herself. “I mean you don’t! Of course you wouldn’t.” She laughed.
They fell into silence again, only this time it was a lot more comfortable than the last one. Neither was one hundred percent sure what was happening but they both knew they didn’t want it to stop. Despite their lives being so very different they had many things in common…many more than most people, including themselves, could have imagined.
Foremost amongst their similarities was the fact that they both had two siblings/friends who they loved more than life itself but due to their relationship with them they could only go so far. Isabel had two brothers to love and rely on while Alex had two friends who he loved as sisters. This meant they could only go so far in certain aspects of their relationships before coming to a grinding halt.
For the first time both Alex and Isabel were faced with the possibility of a relationship without any constraints. They could take whatever they had with each other as far as they desired, free from their usual restrictions.
Almost without noticing the pair became aware that they were looking at one another. What was strange about this was they weren’t embarrassed. No one was blushing or looking away hurriedly. For the first time they were able to look at someone they desired with an open heart…with nothing to hide. There was no need for explanations or subtext, just the comfort of being in one another’s company simply because that was where they wanted to be.
Alex released his hold on his cup, which was sitting on the table, and reached across and slowly took hold of Isabel’s hand. He wasn’t sure why he did it and he certainly didn’t know where he got the courage to do it but that no longer mattered. The only thing that mattered now was that Isabel hadn’t pulled away…hadn’t laughed in his face. Isabel had watched silently as Alex’s hand had reached out and entwined itself in hers. She was conscious that she had tensed up for a spilt second but she pushed that natural reaction away…she wanted this. She want this as much as Alex did and she was sure if he hadn’t reached across to her she would have reached across to him.
The phone suddenly rang causing both Isabel and Alex to look at the ringing handset that hung on the wall. Neither wanted to move so the phone rang a second time. Just as Isabel was thinking she may have to break her contact with Alex it stopped ringing. “Max must have picked it up upstairs.” She explained.
After a few further seconds they heard footsteps moving quickly down the stairs and along the hallway towards them. Before Max came into sight in the kitchen doorway Isabel pulled her hand away quickly forcing Alex to look at her with a hurt and confused expression. Before she had a chance to apologise for her knee jerk reaction her attention was drawn elsewhere as Max came storming into the kitchen.
“Max what is it?” Isabel exclaimed, standing up. She had reacted to the look on her brother’s face before he had even had a chance to speak.
“It’s Michael.” Max said hurriedly. “He says there’s a problem with the trailer and Hank’s not about to help out so he asked if Alex and I would go over to help.”
Isabel slapped her brother on the arm. “God, Max! You nearly gave me a heart attack. The way you came running in here I thought something terrible had happened.”
“Sorry Isabel.” Max said grabbing his car keys. “I didn’t mean to scare you but Michael asked us to hurry as it’s going to rain soon.”
“Shall I go with you?” Isabel offered, as much to Alex as Max.
Max shook his head. “We shouldn’t be long and I think we need to get under the trailer so that means dirt and spiders.”
Isabel visibly shuddered for a second.
“Not a big fan of spiders?” Alex asked with a big grin.
“Not really.” Isabel answered, suddenly feeling a little coy.
“Come on Alex, we have to get moving.” Max called as he left the kitchen and headed towards the front door. “See you soon sis.”
Isabel and Alex were left for a moment, standing side by side in the kitchen. Their intimate meeting was at an end and neither was sure how things stood. “You’d better hurry else Max will be shouting again.” Isabel joked.
Alex nodded and started to move towards the kitchen door. Isabel watched in silence as Alex stopped and looked to be thinking something over. Gradually Alex turned and looked directly at Isabel. Moving slowly he stepped forward until there was no distance between the two before leaning in and placing a deep and loving kiss on Isabel’s surprised but welcoming lips.
As they broke apart Alex stepped back, looking a little unsteady on his feet.
“Why did you just do that?” Isabel asked in little more than a whisper.
A small smiled slowly spread across Alex’s face. “Because up until yesterday I wouldn’t have but now I know you you give me the strength I need to do it.”
Isabel was overjoyed at his words, almost as much as she was at his actions. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
“Then I’ll make sure I am as quick as I can.” Alex smirked before turning to follow Max.
A few minutes earlier on the other side of town by the trailer park Michael replaced the payphone onto its cradle before turning round and facing the handgun that was pointing at his head. “I’ve done as you ordered. Now how about you put that gun down and we settle this like real men?”
The young man in army fatigues smiled broadly as he kept Michael in his sights. “I’m sure I would like nothing more but I have my orders and that is to keep you in one piece.”
“Those orders of yours,” Michael was struggling to keep his temper in check. “They include threatening innocent young women?”
“If threatening your little friend Maria Deluca helps to keep you under control and compliant then I am happy to do it.” The airman conceded. “However I have to admit I wouldn’t normally hide behind a woman but orders are orders.”
“Carter!” A voice called from behind where Michael was standing. “Is it done?”
“Yes sergeant.”
“Then let’s get things ready.” The disembodied voice called. “Everyone back to the trailer…now!”
Michael’s heart sank. He had done what he believed he would never do…he had betrayed Max, which in turn would lead to the betrayal of Isabel. They had obviously been watching him closely due to the fact that not only had they jumped on him when he had arrived home from his evening out with his friends but they had immediately threatened Maria in their attempt to get him to comply with their demands.
The one saving grace for Michael was that he hoped that he and Max would be more than a match for the men that were currently holding him captive. It was a slim possibility but the thought of allowing a solitary Maria to come face to face with several armed men was more than he could stand. If they were looking for a fight he would give them one and he wouldn’t be hiding behind a petit girl.
To be continued…
“The two of you kissed?” Maria almost shrieked.
“Yes.” Alex nodded while smiling broadly. “In fact Isabel kissed me, which was my point.”
“Alex, if you’re telling us Isabel kissed you I think it is safe to say she is interested in you.” Liz confirmed. “I would never have imagined Isabel was the type...” Seeing the hurt look on Alex’s face Liz expanded on her comment. “I don’t mean she isn’t the type to kiss you, I mean she’s infamous around school for dating all the popular boys but then casting them aside like yesterdays news before any of them can get close. If she is interested in you, which I think she obviously is after her actions, this isn’t just big news…it’s huge!”
“So what happened?” Maria questioned. “How did it come about?”
Alex sat for a moment before shrugging nonchalantly. “We’d been chatting late last night and Isabel had just told me about their secret. When she had finished explaining a few things she got up to leave and I followed her to the door to see her out.”
“And?” Maria pressed.
“And just as she was stepping out of the room she reached forward, grabbed me and gave me a kiss on the lips before leaving.” Alex continued.
“Didn’t either of you say anything.” Liz wasn’t as animated as Maria but she wanted details just the same.
“I asked her why she did it.” Alex could feel his now customary blush creeping up his neck. “And Isabel said it was because I wouldn’t.”
“I can’t believe this.” Maria enthused. “I know Liz already said it but this is huge!”
“You don’t think she is just messing with me or using me do you?” Alex’s lack of confidence began to raise its ugly head. “In the little time that I have known her I would never believe it of her but it is rather sudden and I am not accustomed to my dreams coming true.”
Maria started to shake her head vigorously. “If she is messing you about or toying with you it will be the last thing she ever does. Sheriff or no Sheriff, she’ll have more to be scared of than being taken away if she hurts you.”
“Maria calm down.” Liz turned to Alex. “And Alex, stop selling yourself short. I would have thought it was reasonably clear what is going on here.”
With both Maria and Alex frowning at her in bemusement Liz knew she had better explain herself. “None of us here can claim to understand what the three aliens have been through or go through ever single day. We now know that part of being who they are involves keeping their secret safe. That was all shot to hell the day Max saved me.”
Liz turned to look at Alex specifically. “Alex you may not be aware but Isabel fought tooth and nail to let you in on what is going on. It wasn’t so much that the boys didn’t want to tell you, more that they don’t want to tell anyone. Isabel has obviously formed some kind of connection with you and as soon as that happened it became clear she wanted to let you in on their secret.”
“So you think this is real?” Alex questioned. “You don’t think she is messing with me.”
Liz shook her head. “In fact I would say it is the complete opposite, just think about it. They have probably grown up thinking that no one will ever know their secret…ever know the real them. Now that their secret is out, whether they like it or not, their lives will change.”
“You have to understand what Isabel is going through, what is happening from her point of view.” Liz tried to explain. “The reason Isabel kissed you the way she did was probably in part to do with the fact that she may have thought she would never get the opportunity to get close to anyone other than Max or Michael. As they are her brothers it’s quite feasible that she imagined going through life without ever having a close relationship with a member of the opposite sex. Then you come along, lovely as you are, only to blow her world wide apart by not only being honest and trust worthy but you also accept her for who and what she is. You don’t shy away from her or judge her. It’s no wonder she kissed you, in fact it makes perfect sense.”
“It does?” Alex questioned before he could censor himself. “I mean it does.” He said, more to convince himself than the girls.
Liz lifted herself from her chair and moved to join Alex, sitting beside him. “Alex, you do know that sometimes, when they kiss, a bond can be formed and intimate details can be passed between one another?”
“What?” Alex exclaimed.
Liz glanced at Maria in surprise and then back at Alex. “Didn’t Isabel tell you? Didn’t you see anything when you kissed?”
“Isabel didn’t have time to go into too much detail as it was getting late.” Alex explained. “As for the other thing I thought I was imagining it…I put it down to feeling light-headed.”
“So you did see something?” Maria pressed.
“Well…yes.” Alex admitted. “It wasn’t as much what I saw but what I felt. We only kissed for a brief second but I thought I saw a couple of images of me flashing into my mind. I thought at the time it was odd as the images appeared to be me looking at myself, like an out of body experience.”
Liz smiled. “The reason it was so odd and why you felt funny was because the images you saw weren’t from you, they were from Isabel. It wasn’t an out of body experience…it was how you look through Isabel’s eyes.”
“What about the feelings I felt?” Alex continued. “Were they from Isabel too?”
“What did you feel?” Maria asked gently.
Alex dropped his head.
“Alex, what’s wrong?” Both girls were concerned by the sudden change in Alex’s demeanour.
“I’ve just realised.” Alex slowly raised his head. “We’re talking about Isabel’s inner most thoughts…her deepest feelings. If the connection is how you described it they would be unable to hide their true feelings. We’d be able to know exactly what is going on inside of them.”
“We know.” Maria looked sombre. “We’re just finding out that it’s not easy being them.”
Liz placed her hand over one of Alex’s. “Alex, we weren’t looking to pry. We didn’t want to know anything private about Isabel. We were only trying to help you understand what is going on, with both them and us.”
“I know Liz.” Alex smiled softly at his petit friend. “It’s just that I suddenly realised how big a deal all this is. The things I have learnt about them so far have simply blown my mind. Add what I have just discovered about connections and flashes…I think I need to lie down.”
Maria came over to join her two friends that were sitting on the sun bed, placing an arm around Alex’s shoulder. “If you thought life was complicated enough just being a teenager then I think you have a big surprise coming when you fully understand what it is like to be a fully paid up member of the ‘I know an alien’ fan club.”
That comment caused all three friends to smile. Alex stood up, followed by the two girls.
“Are you going?” Liz asked softly.
Alex pulled Liz into a hug. “I think I need to go and talk to Isabel.” Alex released Liz and step forward to hug Maria. As he stepped back he looked at both his girls. “You don’t mind do you?”
“What?” Maria tried to look hurt. “That you are replacing us with a tall, beautiful blond who not only looks out of his world but is out of this world?”
“Exactly.” Alex grinned before looking a little more serious. “And I am sure I won’t catch the pair of you lusting after Max and Michael in the coming weeks.”
“Lusting? Us?” Liz had a mischievous smile on her lips. “As if we would.” With that Liz stepped beside Maria and they each wrapped an arm round each other so they stood side by side looking at Alex.
“I don’t know what those two boys have been through but I am not sure they are prepared for having you two in their lives.” Alex joked.
“They have special powers.” Liz added defensively.
“It still makes it an unfair fight.” Maria affirmed.
“You’re right.” Liz conceded with a broad smile. “They don’t stand a chance.”
Alex opened the front door quietly and stepped inside. It was still only 9pm so it wasn’t exactly late but he wanted to make sure he didn’t disturb anyone else who was in the house.
He’d taken his time walking back to allow himself some time to think about what he had learned in the last 24hrs. More than that he wanted to let Isabel know how flattered he was that she had fought so hard to let him in on their secret. He was also conscious of not making a mountain out of a mole hill so he wouldn’t labour the point.
As he walked towards the kitchen he could see the light was on. It wasn’t until he turned and entered the kitchen that he found Isabel sitting at the table with her back towards him.
Alex stood stock still for a moment. He knew he was being all soppy and unmanly when it came to Isabel but he just needed a moment to breathe in her beauty. The fact that he was looking at her from the back wasn’t really the point. If the truth be told it wasn’t her outward appearance that he was so besotted by.
For many years now Alex had been convinced there was more to Isabel than just an attractive smile and a good dress sense. Not that he wanted to tar all attractive, well dressed people with the same brush but he had always been convinced there were hidden depths to Isabel and those convictions had only been reaffirmed in recent days.
He had discovered that not only had she been forced to keep this amazing secret for the last ten years but she had also had to live with the constant fear of being found out and carted off to who knows where.
“Alex, are you coming in or do you want me to bring you a chair?”
Alex blinked numerous times as he struggled to work out how Isabel knew not only that he was there but also how she knew it was him and not someone else, especially as she still had her back to him.
Isabel turned to look at Alex and greeted him with a broad smile.
“How did you know I was there?” Alex walked towards the table. “And how did you know it was me?” Alex leaned in towards Isabel and whispered. “Do you have special hearing?”
Isabel laughed at both Alex’s question and the look of wonder on his face when he asked it. “Alex, we’re not superheros.” Isabel giggled. “I heard the front door close, despite how quiet you were being, and Max is upstairs.”
“What about your parents?” Alex sat down on a chair opposite Isabel. “Where are they?”
Isabel closed the magazine she had been reading when Alex came in. “Our parents are out of town for the night.” When her companion raised his eyebrows in question at her statement she continued. “As both our parents are lawyers they sometimes get stuck at work for long periods of time depending on how a case is going or whereabouts in a case they actually are. On a rare occasion, usually for big cases, they stay in a motel rather than having to drive backwards and forwards from home to work.”
“And they don’t mind leaving the two of you on your own at home?” Alex questioned. “I know I am one to talk as my parents often leave me and they are out of town as we speak.”
“Don’t be silly Alex.” Isabel shook her head. “What your parents are doing is both noble and loving, it’s not like they have abandoned you.”
“I know.” Alex nodded. “I just didn’t want you to think me a hypocrite.”
“Not likely.” Isabel smiled and then dropped her gaze as she suddenly found her hands very interesting.
“Actually I’m glad you are here.” Alex began, his words causing Isabel to lift her eyes. “I was hoping to have a little talk.”
“Really?” Isabel wasn’t sure if she liked the sound of this. “Do you have more questions?”
“I do.” Alex confirmed. “But that isn’t what I wanted to talk about. They can wait for another day…I don’t want to hound you.”
Isabel felt her heart flutter as she recognised the concern that was evident in his voice. “What is it you wanted to talk about?”
“I’ve just been talking to Liz and Maria and they told me one or two bits of information that I didn’t know.” Alex continued.
Isabel dropped her gaze again. Unsure if she was in for another embarrassing moment, similar to the one Michael put her through at dinner, she readied herself for anything.
“I wanted to say thank you.”
Isabel’s head snapped up upon hearing Alex’s tender words. “What?”
Alex stopped for a moment, unsure what was ambiguous about ‘Thank you’. “I said I wanted to say thank you. I promise you we weren’t gossiping about you or telling tales out of school but the girls did tell me that you fought hard to be able to tell me your secret. I just wanted to say how much I appreciate what you did…I know it must have taken a lot for you to do it.”
“It was nothing.” Isabel shrugged.
“I doubt that.” Alex contradicted Isabel. “I can only imagine how much you went through but thanks to you I have been able to sort things out with Liz and Maria and get out relationship back on track.”
“I’m glad I could help.” Isabel offered with a slightly embarrassed smile.
“So what’s it to be?” Alex asked out of the blue.
It was Isabel’s turn to be stumped. “Sorry?”
“Coffee or hot chocolate?” Alex asked as he stood up from the table. “I promised you a drink earlier.”
Isabel sighed with relief once she realised what he was asking. “Hot Chocolate sounds nice. I haven’t had one of them in ages.”
Isabel watched in amazement as Alex busied himself around the kitchen. She even offered to help at one stage as Alex flew through the cupboards looking for what he needed but he insisted on Isabel putting her feet up while he waited on her. This was something she could definitely get used to.
After several minutes of frantic action in the kitchen Alex returned to the table carrying two large cups of hot chocolate. Having place one cup in front of Isabel he moved back round the table and took a seat across from his beautiful companion. “Let me know it if isn’t very nice. My mom’s the hot chocolate expert in our house and I never seem to be able to get it as perfect as she always manages.”
Isabel took a sip from her cup and was pleasantly surprised by the taste, given Alex’s build up. “It’s lovely Alex. I don’t know how much more perfect your mom could make it but on a scale of one to ten I would say this is a nine.”
“Nine?” Alex feigned wounded pride.
“If it had marshmallows it would be a definite ten but as we don’t have any I think you did wonderfully well with what you had to work with.” Isabel added quickly.
Both youngsters were aware that they were talking about nothing in particular, side stepping any deep and meaningful conversation for fear of ruining their time together. That plan soon failed as they both ran out of anything to say as they fell into a prolonged silence.
“It can’t have been easy.” Alex suddenly spoke up. “Being special the way you are…it can’t have been easy.” He repeated.
Isabel dropped her head for a moment while trying to hide her quickening pulse. She was finding more and more ways to fall for Alex and the fact that he kept referring to her as special was only hastening her fall. “Why do you keep calling me special?” Isabel’s almost sounded annoyed when she asked her question. It became clear that her trust issues had picked now to surface.
Alex shrugged, ignoring the tone in her voice. “Because that is what you are. If I am deemed normal does that make you abnormal because you are different? Maybe it does.” Alex answered his own question but continued. “But abnormal has a horrible tone to it. I think if I am going to be normal then I prefer to think of you as special, which you are.”
Alex could see Isabel watching his every move, listening to every word intently. He wanted to allay any fears or misconceptions she might be having so he spoke up. “In case you are wondering I’m not looking to breakdown the walls to castle Isabel and storm the ramparts, attempting to have my wicked way with you.” He joked. “I have no ulterior motive for being here.”
“You don’t?” Isabel asked ruefully before she corrected herself. “I mean you don’t! Of course you wouldn’t.” She laughed.
They fell into silence again, only this time it was a lot more comfortable than the last one. Neither was one hundred percent sure what was happening but they both knew they didn’t want it to stop. Despite their lives being so very different they had many things in common…many more than most people, including themselves, could have imagined.
Foremost amongst their similarities was the fact that they both had two siblings/friends who they loved more than life itself but due to their relationship with them they could only go so far. Isabel had two brothers to love and rely on while Alex had two friends who he loved as sisters. This meant they could only go so far in certain aspects of their relationships before coming to a grinding halt.
For the first time both Alex and Isabel were faced with the possibility of a relationship without any constraints. They could take whatever they had with each other as far as they desired, free from their usual restrictions.
Almost without noticing the pair became aware that they were looking at one another. What was strange about this was they weren’t embarrassed. No one was blushing or looking away hurriedly. For the first time they were able to look at someone they desired with an open heart…with nothing to hide. There was no need for explanations or subtext, just the comfort of being in one another’s company simply because that was where they wanted to be.
Alex released his hold on his cup, which was sitting on the table, and reached across and slowly took hold of Isabel’s hand. He wasn’t sure why he did it and he certainly didn’t know where he got the courage to do it but that no longer mattered. The only thing that mattered now was that Isabel hadn’t pulled away…hadn’t laughed in his face. Isabel had watched silently as Alex’s hand had reached out and entwined itself in hers. She was conscious that she had tensed up for a spilt second but she pushed that natural reaction away…she wanted this. She want this as much as Alex did and she was sure if he hadn’t reached across to her she would have reached across to him.
The phone suddenly rang causing both Isabel and Alex to look at the ringing handset that hung on the wall. Neither wanted to move so the phone rang a second time. Just as Isabel was thinking she may have to break her contact with Alex it stopped ringing. “Max must have picked it up upstairs.” She explained.
After a few further seconds they heard footsteps moving quickly down the stairs and along the hallway towards them. Before Max came into sight in the kitchen doorway Isabel pulled her hand away quickly forcing Alex to look at her with a hurt and confused expression. Before she had a chance to apologise for her knee jerk reaction her attention was drawn elsewhere as Max came storming into the kitchen.
“Max what is it?” Isabel exclaimed, standing up. She had reacted to the look on her brother’s face before he had even had a chance to speak.
“It’s Michael.” Max said hurriedly. “He says there’s a problem with the trailer and Hank’s not about to help out so he asked if Alex and I would go over to help.”
Isabel slapped her brother on the arm. “God, Max! You nearly gave me a heart attack. The way you came running in here I thought something terrible had happened.”
“Sorry Isabel.” Max said grabbing his car keys. “I didn’t mean to scare you but Michael asked us to hurry as it’s going to rain soon.”
“Shall I go with you?” Isabel offered, as much to Alex as Max.
Max shook his head. “We shouldn’t be long and I think we need to get under the trailer so that means dirt and spiders.”
Isabel visibly shuddered for a second.
“Not a big fan of spiders?” Alex asked with a big grin.
“Not really.” Isabel answered, suddenly feeling a little coy.
“Come on Alex, we have to get moving.” Max called as he left the kitchen and headed towards the front door. “See you soon sis.”
Isabel and Alex were left for a moment, standing side by side in the kitchen. Their intimate meeting was at an end and neither was sure how things stood. “You’d better hurry else Max will be shouting again.” Isabel joked.
Alex nodded and started to move towards the kitchen door. Isabel watched in silence as Alex stopped and looked to be thinking something over. Gradually Alex turned and looked directly at Isabel. Moving slowly he stepped forward until there was no distance between the two before leaning in and placing a deep and loving kiss on Isabel’s surprised but welcoming lips.
As they broke apart Alex stepped back, looking a little unsteady on his feet.
“Why did you just do that?” Isabel asked in little more than a whisper.
A small smiled slowly spread across Alex’s face. “Because up until yesterday I wouldn’t have but now I know you you give me the strength I need to do it.”
Isabel was overjoyed at his words, almost as much as she was at his actions. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
“Then I’ll make sure I am as quick as I can.” Alex smirked before turning to follow Max.
A few minutes earlier on the other side of town by the trailer park Michael replaced the payphone onto its cradle before turning round and facing the handgun that was pointing at his head. “I’ve done as you ordered. Now how about you put that gun down and we settle this like real men?”
The young man in army fatigues smiled broadly as he kept Michael in his sights. “I’m sure I would like nothing more but I have my orders and that is to keep you in one piece.”
“Those orders of yours,” Michael was struggling to keep his temper in check. “They include threatening innocent young women?”
“If threatening your little friend Maria Deluca helps to keep you under control and compliant then I am happy to do it.” The airman conceded. “However I have to admit I wouldn’t normally hide behind a woman but orders are orders.”
“Carter!” A voice called from behind where Michael was standing. “Is it done?”
“Yes sergeant.”
“Then let’s get things ready.” The disembodied voice called. “Everyone back to the trailer…now!”
Michael’s heart sank. He had done what he believed he would never do…he had betrayed Max, which in turn would lead to the betrayal of Isabel. They had obviously been watching him closely due to the fact that not only had they jumped on him when he had arrived home from his evening out with his friends but they had immediately threatened Maria in their attempt to get him to comply with their demands.
The one saving grace for Michael was that he hoped that he and Max would be more than a match for the men that were currently holding him captive. It was a slim possibility but the thought of allowing a solitary Maria to come face to face with several armed men was more than he could stand. If they were looking for a fight he would give them one and he wouldn’t be hiding behind a petit girl.
To be continued…
-
StargazerUK
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 157
- Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 2:01 pm
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Into the Lion's Den Pt14. A/I & C/C 26-Apr-04
Chapter 14
“Thanks for coming with me.” Max sent a sideways glance towards Alex as he drove along the quiet streets. “Michael sounded a little tense on the phone, which although not anything new I think it will help if we can get this problem fixed sooner rather than later.”
“No worries.” Alex smiled. “I’m happy if I can help.” He sat silently for a moment before continuing. “You and Michael are pretty tight.”
“Yes we are.” Max agreed.
Alex smiled to himself at the briefness of Max’s answer. He didn’t think Max would suddenly open up to him now that he knew his secret but he sometimes forgot just how quiet and closed off Max could be sometimes. If you hadn’t been looking for him it would have been very easy to miss Max as he almost blended into the background. In fact it might have only been his pursuit of Liz that brought him out into the open at all.
“I could say the same about you, Liz and Maria.” Max cut in on Alex’s thoughts.
“I think the phrase is ‘Thick as thieves’.” Alex joked.
“It’s quite unusual for a guy our age to have two female best friends isn’t it?” Max questioned.
Alex nodded. “I suppose you are right but I think it is a case of our friendship just developing over time. It’s just a side issue that I’m a guy and they are girls.”
“And Isabel?”
Alex looked at Max and was pleased to see a slight smirk on his face after asking his question. “What about Isabel?” He threw back. “I don’t understand the question.”
“Nothing really,” Max shrugged. “I just thought it was my duty as Isabel’s brother to bring up the subject…check out your intentions.”
Both boys laughed at Max’s last comment. “My intentions?” Alex repeated. “This is Isabel we are talking about. Aside from being the most beautiful girl in school she is also the only one who comes close to Maria in the scariest girl in school competition. I love Maria and I think you already know I am fond of your sister but I think we both know who would lose in both a physical and mental fight with either of them…me!”
“And that doesn’t bother you...” Max tried not to look too amused about the subject they were talking about. “That my sister is such a strong woman?”
“Are you kidding?” Alex replied. “After all the time I spent with Liz and Maria, who are both strong independent young women, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was something I subconsciously look for in a woman. It’s probably what draws me to Isabel.”
“You know that is my sister you are talking about.” Max questioned.
“And you know that I love and think of Liz and Maria as sisters so if you want to get all protective on me I will understand but it works both ways.” Alex explained. “I would like to think your intentions towards Liz are honourable just as mine are towards Isabel.”
“Agreed.” Max nodded. “But just for the record if my sister likes you she will make up her own mind about you, whether or not I approve.”
“It’s the same with Liz and Maria.” Alex concluded. “They let me make my little speeches just to keep me happy but in the end they do what they want.”
“Maybe we have more in common than I realised.” Max smiled.
“Maybe we do. We could start our own little club.” Alex joked. “‘Brow beaten anonymous’ sounds like a good name. BBA for short.”
“Me, you and Michael can be founder members.” Max said as he pulled up at Michael’s trailer.
“I’ll bring chips and dip.” Alex laughed as he climbed out of the jeep.
“That’s funny.” Max took a couple of steps towards the trailer. “There aren’t any lights on.”
“Maybe that’s the problem.” Alex stepped beside Max. “If the power’s out Michael might be inside trying to fix it. Did he tell you what the problem was exactly while on the phone?”
“No.” Max shook his head. “He just said there was a problem with the trailer and could we come over and give him a hand as quickly as possible.”
“Why don’t you try inside while I check round the back?” Alex offered.
Max started towards the door while Alex moved around the side of the trailer. “Give me a call if you see him but don’t surprise him as he’s liable to make a lunge for you.”
“That’s good to know.” Alex mumbled to himself as he stepped round the back. “That’s all I need, some big ape of a high school student tackling me to the floor while I’m trying to help him.”
After an unsuccessful search of the near surrounding area Alex headed back to the trailer. It looked more and more likely that the problem was with the power as there still weren’t any lights on inside the trailer despite Max having gone inside a minute or so earlier.
Alex pulled open the door to the trailer and stepped inside. “Knock, knock.” He called out. “Where are you guys?”
Suddenly a strong light was shone into Alex’s face causing him to lose his composure for a moment. His natural reaction was to throw an arm up in front of his face to block the blinding light. “Hey guys, cut it out.”
“Stand very still Mr Whitman and no harm will come to you.” A stern voice called from beyond the light.
“What the hell’s going on?” Alex’s heart rate increased. “Where are Max and Michael? Who are you?”
Alex suddenly felt two sets of hands clamp onto his arms, pulling them roughly behind him as he felt and heard what must have been a pair of handcuffs attached to his wrists. He was then pushed forward, turned and thrown down onto what turned out to be a couch of some kind. It was then that Alex became aware of Michael and Max sitting either side of him.
Finally a light switch was thrown and the room was bathed in a dim light. As the three young men squinted as their eyes adjusted to the light the scene before them unfolded. Standing in front of them were four men wearing what looked like army fatigues but rather than green they were a dark blue in colour. All four men were carrying hand guns but only one of them had his weapon drawn.
Despite his heart thundering in his chest Alex quickly realised why they were here and if that was the case there was only one way to play this, terrified and ignorant. “Why are we here? What are we supposed to have done?”
“I think the less you say at the moment the better.” The young sergeant instructed.
“Are you kidding me?” Alex continued. “We’re three high school students and we are being held at gun point and you don’t expect us to ask questions? I mean what are you…the army or something?”
“We’re not the army.” One of the airmen said with distain. “We’re air force.”
“Carter, shut your mouth!” The sergeant commanded. “No one speaks to these three until we get back to base.” The senior airman turned to his men. “Carter, Jones…you go and get the cars and bring them round to the side of the trailer. Corporal you go and inform Colonel Matthews we have the boys and I’ll keep watch.”
The three young men moved to follow their orders while the sergeant started to pace in front of his three captives. “Is there any chance you are going to tell us what this is all about?” Max asked in a calm voice that belied his inner turmoil.
“You know why we want you.” The officer replied. “Or at least one of you does.”
Alex fidgeted while trying to catch their captor’s attention. It seemed he’d spent too many years in school putting his hand up before asking a question. “Is this to do with the Sheriff arresting me the other day? Because if it is it was all just a big misunderstanding.”
“Son, I don’t know anything about no arrest.” Fletcher explained. “One of you did something in the Crashdown in September to bring you to the attention of the FEDS. My orders are to find out which one of you it was and then to take you back to my commanding officer.”
“I did it.” Alex blurted out.
Max and Michael turned to look at Alex in shock at his admission. “No, I did it.” Max added.
“Don’t listen to them.” Michael interrupted. “It was me.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Their captor shook his head. “Been watching ‘Spartacus’ have we?”
The man came and stood in front of Alex, leaning down to be just in front of his face. “So what exactly was it you did?”
Alex felt his pulse quicken. “Well actually I didn’t do anything but if it means you’ll let the other two go I’ll confess to whatever you want.”
The sergeant straightened himself up and turned his attention towards Max and Michael. “And I suppose you two are going to own up as well?” Both boys nodded.
“Suddenly the trailer door opened and the corporal leaned in. “Sergeant the Colonel wants an update, what shall I tell him?”
The sergeant let out a heavy sigh. “I’m coming out. I need to speak to the Colonel as I am still not sure of the validity of this mission.”
“Shall I stay and guard them?” The corporal offered.
“No, they’re fine.” The sergeant stepped towards the door. “They’re handcuffed and there’s only one way in and one way out. I’m still not sure what three ordinary high school boys are supposed to have that is of interest to the air force. Just guard the door.”
With the door closed the boys were left alone for the first time. “I’m sorry.” Michael began. “I didn’t know what else to do. They said they would hurt Maria and take her in before moving on to Liz and Isabel. I thought if I got us here we might be able to over power them or something but from the looks of things that isn’t going to happen.”
“It’s alright Michael. Don’t beat yourself up about it.” Max said stoically. “We’d have done the same thing.”
Michael was pleased to see both Max and Alex nodding at Max’s comments but it didn’t make him feel any less guilty.
“I have an idea.” Alex said suddenly. “You’re not going to like it but we don’t have any other choice.”
“What is it?” Max asked nervously.
“It’s apparent from what they have said they don’t know exactly what they are looking for.” Alex began.
“I heard them talking earlier and all they keep saying is ‘something happened’ at the Crashdown in September.” Michael cut in.
“We know you are different but we know I’m not.” Alex continued. “If we can get free I can cause some kind of distraction so you can go and get help, even the Sheriff. It can’t be legal what they are doing and we just need to let someone else know what is going on.”
Max was already shaking his head. “We can’t leave you behind to take the rap for us.”
“Listen to me.” Alex said firmly while keeping his voice down. “We only have a matter of seconds and it might not even work anyway. If they run tests on you they will know that you are different. We already know what they will find if they check me out. Trust me I am not trying to be brave I am being logical. If I could leave one of you to do it I would believe me.”
Max glance at Michael. “I know I got us into this but I think he might be right. We have to get back and warn Isabel as well as Maria and Liz. I don’t think we have any other choice.”
“Let’s do it.” Max nodded.
In a second both boys had used a brief burst of power to break a link on their handcuffs. “I know the best way out.” Michael moved towards one of the side rooms of the trailer.
Max pulled Alex to his feet and unlocked his handcuffs with a small use of power. “Now hurry.” Alex insisted. “They’ll be back any minute.”
As the boys went to move down the small corridor they turned to look briefly at Alex. “I’m sorry man.” Michael said mournfully. “We’ll be back for you.”
“I know.” Alex tried to smile bravely. “Now get out of here.”
Alex stood in the centre of the trailer in a blind panic. He needed to make some kind of diversion to distract the airmen but what could he do? Realising he could only influence his own actions while giving the others a chance to get away he headed to the opposite end of the trailer and looked for something heavy. Picking up the base of a lamp Alex crouched down by a large window and readied himself. At the first sign of the returning airmen it was his intention to smash the window and make a break for it, hopefully drawing their captor’s away from Max and Michael’s escape.
The sudden thought of being shot in the back flashed into his mind as he ran away but he soon dispelled that image as he was confident that as despicable as these men were for kidnapping high school kids he was confident they wouldn’t stoop to killing him. Or he hoped so anyway, he was betting his life on it.
At the opposite end of the trailer Max and Michael were also squatting by a window in silence. They were watching for any movement before they removed the window frame with the use of their powers. They’d already hit a minor snag, Max’s jeep was parked out front where the airmen were making their call. They’d need another form of escape.
As they watched a couple of large four-wheel drive SUV’s came into sight. The fact that they were all black with blacked out windows was so clichéd that both boys nearly laughed. Both vehicles were pulled up beside the trailer, next to the window the boys sat at. The two drivers climbed out and rounded the trailer towards the front.
With a quick nod both boys used their powers to release the hinges that held the window in place. Lowering the window to the floor they each climbed out before lifting the window back into place and reattaching it. The boys had soon realised that as the airmen had no idea what they were dealing with they were being given free reign when it came to the use of their powers. If they had known that two of the boys had special powers they would have never let them out of their sight.
Suddenly a loud smash was heard from the other end of the trailer. “Alex!” Max whispered to Michael. Michael simply nodded. As the sound of a commotion began to build Max opened the nearest SUV and climbed in. Michael moved to the second car and opened the hood with his powers before scanning the engine. Placing a hand on the starter motor he fried it in an instant, preventing the vehicle from being of any further use to their captor’s.
As he climbed into the first car beside Max they could hear muffled shouts as they ordered an escaping Alex to surrender. “Shall we go after him?” Michael questioned wide eyed.
Max shook his head solemnly. “With just Alex to pursue they’re less likely to draw their guns. If they think we will over power them we could all be in trouble.”
Suddenly the face of one of the airmen appeared at the window beside their car. It quickly became apparent that they were not only searching for Alex but also them. Max touched a finger to the ignition and the car roared into life. Placing the car into drive he floored the accelerator and kicked up a storm of dust and debris.
As the car lurched into action and thundered towards the trailer park exit Max could see in the rear view mirror that a couple of the airmen where giving chase on foot while another ran round to the second car. For one terrifying moment Max could see that two of the pursers had their guns drawn but as the car sped away he was pleased there was no attempt to stop them by force.
The last thing Max saw made his heart sink. He could see the sergeant marching Alex back towards the trailer with his arms once again tied behind his back.
Alex’s plan had worked, they were free…but at what cost?
To be continued…
“Thanks for coming with me.” Max sent a sideways glance towards Alex as he drove along the quiet streets. “Michael sounded a little tense on the phone, which although not anything new I think it will help if we can get this problem fixed sooner rather than later.”
“No worries.” Alex smiled. “I’m happy if I can help.” He sat silently for a moment before continuing. “You and Michael are pretty tight.”
“Yes we are.” Max agreed.
Alex smiled to himself at the briefness of Max’s answer. He didn’t think Max would suddenly open up to him now that he knew his secret but he sometimes forgot just how quiet and closed off Max could be sometimes. If you hadn’t been looking for him it would have been very easy to miss Max as he almost blended into the background. In fact it might have only been his pursuit of Liz that brought him out into the open at all.
“I could say the same about you, Liz and Maria.” Max cut in on Alex’s thoughts.
“I think the phrase is ‘Thick as thieves’.” Alex joked.
“It’s quite unusual for a guy our age to have two female best friends isn’t it?” Max questioned.
Alex nodded. “I suppose you are right but I think it is a case of our friendship just developing over time. It’s just a side issue that I’m a guy and they are girls.”
“And Isabel?”
Alex looked at Max and was pleased to see a slight smirk on his face after asking his question. “What about Isabel?” He threw back. “I don’t understand the question.”
“Nothing really,” Max shrugged. “I just thought it was my duty as Isabel’s brother to bring up the subject…check out your intentions.”
Both boys laughed at Max’s last comment. “My intentions?” Alex repeated. “This is Isabel we are talking about. Aside from being the most beautiful girl in school she is also the only one who comes close to Maria in the scariest girl in school competition. I love Maria and I think you already know I am fond of your sister but I think we both know who would lose in both a physical and mental fight with either of them…me!”
“And that doesn’t bother you...” Max tried not to look too amused about the subject they were talking about. “That my sister is such a strong woman?”
“Are you kidding?” Alex replied. “After all the time I spent with Liz and Maria, who are both strong independent young women, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was something I subconsciously look for in a woman. It’s probably what draws me to Isabel.”
“You know that is my sister you are talking about.” Max questioned.
“And you know that I love and think of Liz and Maria as sisters so if you want to get all protective on me I will understand but it works both ways.” Alex explained. “I would like to think your intentions towards Liz are honourable just as mine are towards Isabel.”
“Agreed.” Max nodded. “But just for the record if my sister likes you she will make up her own mind about you, whether or not I approve.”
“It’s the same with Liz and Maria.” Alex concluded. “They let me make my little speeches just to keep me happy but in the end they do what they want.”
“Maybe we have more in common than I realised.” Max smiled.
“Maybe we do. We could start our own little club.” Alex joked. “‘Brow beaten anonymous’ sounds like a good name. BBA for short.”
“Me, you and Michael can be founder members.” Max said as he pulled up at Michael’s trailer.
“I’ll bring chips and dip.” Alex laughed as he climbed out of the jeep.
“That’s funny.” Max took a couple of steps towards the trailer. “There aren’t any lights on.”
“Maybe that’s the problem.” Alex stepped beside Max. “If the power’s out Michael might be inside trying to fix it. Did he tell you what the problem was exactly while on the phone?”
“No.” Max shook his head. “He just said there was a problem with the trailer and could we come over and give him a hand as quickly as possible.”
“Why don’t you try inside while I check round the back?” Alex offered.
Max started towards the door while Alex moved around the side of the trailer. “Give me a call if you see him but don’t surprise him as he’s liable to make a lunge for you.”
“That’s good to know.” Alex mumbled to himself as he stepped round the back. “That’s all I need, some big ape of a high school student tackling me to the floor while I’m trying to help him.”
After an unsuccessful search of the near surrounding area Alex headed back to the trailer. It looked more and more likely that the problem was with the power as there still weren’t any lights on inside the trailer despite Max having gone inside a minute or so earlier.
Alex pulled open the door to the trailer and stepped inside. “Knock, knock.” He called out. “Where are you guys?”
Suddenly a strong light was shone into Alex’s face causing him to lose his composure for a moment. His natural reaction was to throw an arm up in front of his face to block the blinding light. “Hey guys, cut it out.”
“Stand very still Mr Whitman and no harm will come to you.” A stern voice called from beyond the light.
“What the hell’s going on?” Alex’s heart rate increased. “Where are Max and Michael? Who are you?”
Alex suddenly felt two sets of hands clamp onto his arms, pulling them roughly behind him as he felt and heard what must have been a pair of handcuffs attached to his wrists. He was then pushed forward, turned and thrown down onto what turned out to be a couch of some kind. It was then that Alex became aware of Michael and Max sitting either side of him.
Finally a light switch was thrown and the room was bathed in a dim light. As the three young men squinted as their eyes adjusted to the light the scene before them unfolded. Standing in front of them were four men wearing what looked like army fatigues but rather than green they were a dark blue in colour. All four men were carrying hand guns but only one of them had his weapon drawn.
Despite his heart thundering in his chest Alex quickly realised why they were here and if that was the case there was only one way to play this, terrified and ignorant. “Why are we here? What are we supposed to have done?”
“I think the less you say at the moment the better.” The young sergeant instructed.
“Are you kidding me?” Alex continued. “We’re three high school students and we are being held at gun point and you don’t expect us to ask questions? I mean what are you…the army or something?”
“We’re not the army.” One of the airmen said with distain. “We’re air force.”
“Carter, shut your mouth!” The sergeant commanded. “No one speaks to these three until we get back to base.” The senior airman turned to his men. “Carter, Jones…you go and get the cars and bring them round to the side of the trailer. Corporal you go and inform Colonel Matthews we have the boys and I’ll keep watch.”
The three young men moved to follow their orders while the sergeant started to pace in front of his three captives. “Is there any chance you are going to tell us what this is all about?” Max asked in a calm voice that belied his inner turmoil.
“You know why we want you.” The officer replied. “Or at least one of you does.”
Alex fidgeted while trying to catch their captor’s attention. It seemed he’d spent too many years in school putting his hand up before asking a question. “Is this to do with the Sheriff arresting me the other day? Because if it is it was all just a big misunderstanding.”
“Son, I don’t know anything about no arrest.” Fletcher explained. “One of you did something in the Crashdown in September to bring you to the attention of the FEDS. My orders are to find out which one of you it was and then to take you back to my commanding officer.”
“I did it.” Alex blurted out.
Max and Michael turned to look at Alex in shock at his admission. “No, I did it.” Max added.
“Don’t listen to them.” Michael interrupted. “It was me.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Their captor shook his head. “Been watching ‘Spartacus’ have we?”
The man came and stood in front of Alex, leaning down to be just in front of his face. “So what exactly was it you did?”
Alex felt his pulse quicken. “Well actually I didn’t do anything but if it means you’ll let the other two go I’ll confess to whatever you want.”
The sergeant straightened himself up and turned his attention towards Max and Michael. “And I suppose you two are going to own up as well?” Both boys nodded.
“Suddenly the trailer door opened and the corporal leaned in. “Sergeant the Colonel wants an update, what shall I tell him?”
The sergeant let out a heavy sigh. “I’m coming out. I need to speak to the Colonel as I am still not sure of the validity of this mission.”
“Shall I stay and guard them?” The corporal offered.
“No, they’re fine.” The sergeant stepped towards the door. “They’re handcuffed and there’s only one way in and one way out. I’m still not sure what three ordinary high school boys are supposed to have that is of interest to the air force. Just guard the door.”
With the door closed the boys were left alone for the first time. “I’m sorry.” Michael began. “I didn’t know what else to do. They said they would hurt Maria and take her in before moving on to Liz and Isabel. I thought if I got us here we might be able to over power them or something but from the looks of things that isn’t going to happen.”
“It’s alright Michael. Don’t beat yourself up about it.” Max said stoically. “We’d have done the same thing.”
Michael was pleased to see both Max and Alex nodding at Max’s comments but it didn’t make him feel any less guilty.
“I have an idea.” Alex said suddenly. “You’re not going to like it but we don’t have any other choice.”
“What is it?” Max asked nervously.
“It’s apparent from what they have said they don’t know exactly what they are looking for.” Alex began.
“I heard them talking earlier and all they keep saying is ‘something happened’ at the Crashdown in September.” Michael cut in.
“We know you are different but we know I’m not.” Alex continued. “If we can get free I can cause some kind of distraction so you can go and get help, even the Sheriff. It can’t be legal what they are doing and we just need to let someone else know what is going on.”
Max was already shaking his head. “We can’t leave you behind to take the rap for us.”
“Listen to me.” Alex said firmly while keeping his voice down. “We only have a matter of seconds and it might not even work anyway. If they run tests on you they will know that you are different. We already know what they will find if they check me out. Trust me I am not trying to be brave I am being logical. If I could leave one of you to do it I would believe me.”
Max glance at Michael. “I know I got us into this but I think he might be right. We have to get back and warn Isabel as well as Maria and Liz. I don’t think we have any other choice.”
“Let’s do it.” Max nodded.
In a second both boys had used a brief burst of power to break a link on their handcuffs. “I know the best way out.” Michael moved towards one of the side rooms of the trailer.
Max pulled Alex to his feet and unlocked his handcuffs with a small use of power. “Now hurry.” Alex insisted. “They’ll be back any minute.”
As the boys went to move down the small corridor they turned to look briefly at Alex. “I’m sorry man.” Michael said mournfully. “We’ll be back for you.”
“I know.” Alex tried to smile bravely. “Now get out of here.”
Alex stood in the centre of the trailer in a blind panic. He needed to make some kind of diversion to distract the airmen but what could he do? Realising he could only influence his own actions while giving the others a chance to get away he headed to the opposite end of the trailer and looked for something heavy. Picking up the base of a lamp Alex crouched down by a large window and readied himself. At the first sign of the returning airmen it was his intention to smash the window and make a break for it, hopefully drawing their captor’s away from Max and Michael’s escape.
The sudden thought of being shot in the back flashed into his mind as he ran away but he soon dispelled that image as he was confident that as despicable as these men were for kidnapping high school kids he was confident they wouldn’t stoop to killing him. Or he hoped so anyway, he was betting his life on it.
At the opposite end of the trailer Max and Michael were also squatting by a window in silence. They were watching for any movement before they removed the window frame with the use of their powers. They’d already hit a minor snag, Max’s jeep was parked out front where the airmen were making their call. They’d need another form of escape.
As they watched a couple of large four-wheel drive SUV’s came into sight. The fact that they were all black with blacked out windows was so clichéd that both boys nearly laughed. Both vehicles were pulled up beside the trailer, next to the window the boys sat at. The two drivers climbed out and rounded the trailer towards the front.
With a quick nod both boys used their powers to release the hinges that held the window in place. Lowering the window to the floor they each climbed out before lifting the window back into place and reattaching it. The boys had soon realised that as the airmen had no idea what they were dealing with they were being given free reign when it came to the use of their powers. If they had known that two of the boys had special powers they would have never let them out of their sight.
Suddenly a loud smash was heard from the other end of the trailer. “Alex!” Max whispered to Michael. Michael simply nodded. As the sound of a commotion began to build Max opened the nearest SUV and climbed in. Michael moved to the second car and opened the hood with his powers before scanning the engine. Placing a hand on the starter motor he fried it in an instant, preventing the vehicle from being of any further use to their captor’s.
As he climbed into the first car beside Max they could hear muffled shouts as they ordered an escaping Alex to surrender. “Shall we go after him?” Michael questioned wide eyed.
Max shook his head solemnly. “With just Alex to pursue they’re less likely to draw their guns. If they think we will over power them we could all be in trouble.”
Suddenly the face of one of the airmen appeared at the window beside their car. It quickly became apparent that they were not only searching for Alex but also them. Max touched a finger to the ignition and the car roared into life. Placing the car into drive he floored the accelerator and kicked up a storm of dust and debris.
As the car lurched into action and thundered towards the trailer park exit Max could see in the rear view mirror that a couple of the airmen where giving chase on foot while another ran round to the second car. For one terrifying moment Max could see that two of the pursers had their guns drawn but as the car sped away he was pleased there was no attempt to stop them by force.
The last thing Max saw made his heart sink. He could see the sergeant marching Alex back towards the trailer with his arms once again tied behind his back.
Alex’s plan had worked, they were free…but at what cost?
To be continued…
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StargazerUK
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Into the Lion's Den Pt15. A/I & C/C 03-May-04
A/N: Hi, As people might not be too keen on what happens in the next couple of chapters I have decided to post them in relatively quick succession so we can get through this quick. Watch out for the next chapter in a couple of days time. ( I already have them written, I'm being a very good boy lol. ) cheers, David / StargazerUK
Chapter 15
Isabel was still sitting at the kitchen table when she checked her watch. She slowly shook her head and admonished herself for her current state of affairs. She couldn’t believe she was sitting indoors clock watching as she impatiently awaited the return of Alex.
She could still feel where his lips had been pressed against hers from earlier. From what little she had seen of Alex she was already getting the idea that she would have to do most of the running…to be the one who always made the first move. That had all been shot to hell, she was pleased to realise, with Alex’s actions before he left. It seemed he was only reticent when he was unsure of how things stood. Now that she had given him the hint that they were getting close it seemed he was willing to make his own decisions, his own moves.
Things were moving so fast that under any other circumstances she would have wanted to take a step back…to think things through but aside from these being anything but normal circumstances she was also aware that she was dealing with someone who, despite appearances, was anything but the norm.
There was something about Alex that played on her mind constantly. It wasn’t for appearances sake that she wanted to spend time with him nor was it an infatuation thing. What is was, plain and simple, was a feeling of Alex being the one. Isabel didn’t know how she knew it…she just did. She couldn’t have explained her feelings to anyone else if her life depended on it but the fact remained she had never felt more comfortable in someone’s presence as she had done around Alex in recent days. She was even feeling differently from how she felt about Max and Michael, which came as somewhat of a relief.
Previously Isabel had always had to two levels of feelings when it came to the male sex. Level one was how she felt about Max, Michael and her dad. She loved them as family and always felt comfortable when they were around. Her second level encompassed the remaining men on the planet, which was heading towards three billion, give or take a few.
Now, for the first time ever, there was the creation of a third level. In that third level she had gone from one extreme to another with the fact that unlike level two and its three billion occupants level three had one resident and it was something she was slowly coming to terms with.
The only thing that she could conclude from her thoughts was it wasn’t one thing she liked about him…it was everything. He wasn’t the best looking guy she had ever seen but she certainly liked the way he looked. He wasn’t the most popular guy in school but what she had gathered in recent days was she didn’t care what anyone else thought about him as she wanted him to do things for her and not anyone else.
Isabel blushed at that thought despite the fact she was sitting alone in her kitchen. There wasn’t any hidden meaning or innuendo in her last thought. She just meant she wanted him to sit with her and not with anyone else. She wanted him to talk to her and not anyone else. And finally she realised she wanted him to think of her and not anyone else.
A sudden knock at the front door pulled her out of her reverie. She checked her watch again and even though it wasn’t too late it was still quite late in the evening to be calling. She knew it couldn’t have been Max or Alex as they would have simply opened the door and come in.
Isabel pulled open the front door and found Liz and Maria standing on her doorstep. “Hi, if you guys are looking for Max and Michael they are over at Michael’s trailer fixing a problem.” It was then that Isabel saw the perplexed looks on the girl’s faces.
“So you don’t know anything either?” Liz questioned.
Isabel shook her head. “Sorry? I’m not sure I follow.”
“Max called Liz and asked where I was.” Maria started to explain. “When Liz said I was with her he asked that we come over and pick you up and meet them at the quarry.”
“Now?” Isabel asked incredulously. “Did they say what’s wrong?”
Liz shook her head. “Max said there is nothing to worry about but he wanted us there as soon as possible.”
“What about Alex? Did he mention Alex?” Isabel didn’t like the sound of this. “They were supposed to be over at Michael’s fixing a problem with the trailer. Why have they gone from being at the trailer to wanting us out at the quarry at this time of night?”
“Isabel, the longer we stand and wait around the less we are going to find out.” Liz tried to reassure the tall girl. “Let’s just head out to the quarry and find out the answers to all of those questions. I’m sure there’s nothing wrong”
Isabel smiled at Liz’s comforting words. “I suppose I am overreacting a little.” Isabel grabbed her coat and pulled the front door closed behind her as she moved to Maria’s jetta that was parked outside the house.
“And while we are on our way you can tell us all about you and Alex.” Maria smiled back over her shoulder at Isabel. “You can start with the kiss.”
Isabel shook her head as she climbed into the back of the car. “I can’t believe he told you about that already.”
“You can’t blame Alex.” Liz turned to smile at Isabel. “After all our hard work it is ingrained into Alex to make sure he tells us about every aspect of his life, especially the good stuff.”
“And has there been much…good stuff?” Isabel tried to ask nonchalantly.
“Are you kidding?” Maria looked at Isabel in her rear view mirror. “If it wasn’t for the fact that both Liz and I hold him down every birthday and plant a big smacker on each cheek he’d have never come into contact with a female pair of lips, unless you count his mom…which we don’t.”
“You hold him down?” Isabel laughed out loud.
Liz nodded. “If the truth be told he doesn’t resist very much.”
“You can’t stop the inevitable.” Maria cut in.
After a few minutes the girls pulled up at the quarry to find Max and Michael standing over near the quarries edge. They looked to be deep in conversation. When the sound of the approaching car reached them they turned to watch as the girls climbed out and approached.
“Where’s Alex?” Isabel immediately questioned when they were within talking distance. When she saw Michael throw Max a brief look she knew something was terribly wrong.
Isabel looked to Liz and Maria and she realised they were unable to read the silent look Michael gave Max in the same way that she did. “Max what’s wrong? You’re scaring me. I asked you where Alex is now where is he?”
At Isabel’s change in demeanour and her insistent questioning Liz and Maria had caught onto the fact that something was desperately wrong.
“Now you have to stay calm while I tell you what happened.” Max began. “You’re not going to like what I have to tell you but I promise we can sort this out.”
“Max!” Isabel stepped forward, her very look insisting that Max tell them what was going on.
“I got captured by some armed men earlier.” Michael cut in. “I wouldn’t have told them anything but…” Michael trailer off as he threw a momentary glance towards Maria before turning away. “They got me to call Max and Alex so I could bring them over to my trailer where they had me held.”
“Where’s Alex?” Tears started to build in Maria’s eyes. “Why isn’t he with you?”
“The four men handcuffed us and were going to take us with them. They left us alone for a couple of minutes and Alex came up with a plan.” Max explained.
“What sort of plan?” Liz questioned while trying to hold her feelings in check.
“Alex said that as we were different they would find out what we were if they carried out any tests or experiments on us.” Max continued. “As Alex is human he said that if they were going to capture one of us it should be him.”
“And you let him stay behind?” Maria voice became broken as she fought back the urge to lose control completely. “Why didn’t you bring him with you? You’re the ones with special powers.”
Max went to reach for Maria but pulled his arm back. “Maria it wasn’t easy for us to do what we did but it was Alex who insisted that we leave him. We had four armed men holding us at gunpoint so we had very little chance of escape. Alex decided he would make a diversion while Michael and I broke free. We promised we would go back for him…”
“That’s very big of you.” Maria spat out. “Meanwhile Alex is off somewhere having who knows what done to him.” Maria turned to Michael who was still standing with his back to the group. “And you called him over so rather than them having just you they then had you, Max and Alex. What was your thinking behind that great idea? Oh no, that’s right…you only think of yourselves.”
“That’s enough Maria!” Liz exclaimed. Maria turned on Liz ready to unload all her pent up anger but when she saw the resolute look on her friends face it stopped her before she began. “I think there are things that Max and Michael haven’t told us yet.” Liz walked forward and placed a comforting arm around her friend. “Let’s wait until we know all the facts and then we can sort out how we are going to get Alex back.”
“From what we can gather they aren’t exactly sure what they are looking for.” Seeing the uncertain looks on everyone’s faces Max continued. “It seems the air force is looking for something that happened in the Crashdown in September.”
“The shooting.” Liz whispered, staring at Max.
Max nodded. “The thing is they don’t really know what happened…well at least the men who were sent to capture us don’t.” Max turned to look at Maria specifically. “I know you might hate us right now but it was the best we could do under the circumstances. I know it won’t be of any comfort but if they do take a look at Alex they aren’t going to find anything different about him. I promise Maria we will find him and bring him home.”
“What if they torture him?” Everyone turned to look at Isabel. She had wrapped her arms around herself even though it was a mild night and she was wearing a jacket. She had remained silent since they had learned about Alex and she now appeared to be shutting down to everything around her. Her eyes were glazed and unfocused. She wasn’t looking at anything in particular and it would have seemed she had drifted off to another place until she spoke.
“I don’t think it will come to that.” Max tried to offer some comfort. “From what Michael over heard and what we saw this isn’t someone hunting us specifically this is someone trying to get one over on the FBI.”
“The FBI?” Liz echoed.
Michael turned slowly to rejoin the group, his face unreadable. “From what I was able to over hear from the sergeant who was leading the team it seems their commanding officer is solely interested in getting one over on the FBI by finding out what happened in the Crashdown before they do. As they had no idea what they were looking for they left the three of us alone so Max and I were able to use our powers to break free.” Michael’s voice was becoming more and more hushed as he spoke. “We knew we couldn’t all break free as they had guns so Alex volunteered to act as a diversion so Max and I could get away. If there was anyway I could have taken his place I would have.”
“How can we get him back?” Liz tried to focus on the positive.
“Michael and I have been talking and we were thinking we might be able to get Isabel to dream walk Alex and pick up on where he is.” Max explained. “It’s the best we can do at the moment.” Max hesitated for a moment before continuing. “Also Alex came up with the idea of informing the sheriff.”
“What?” Liz asked in shock. “I thought we wanted to stay away from him?”
“We do normally.” Max nodded. “But as Alex said it can’t be legal to kidnap three high school students. If we get the sheriff and our parents involved they can kick up a fuss and we may be able to get Alex back that way.”
“The car.” Michael’s voice was barely audible.
“What?” Liz frowned. “What about a car?”
“We escaped in one of their SUV’s.” Michael pointed off to the side. “It’s over there. If we place it somewhere it can be found we might be able to follow it back to where they have Alex.”
“That’s a great idea.” Liz enthused. “That might be the best way for us to get back to Alex.”
“What are we going to do now?” Maria asked.
“From what we have seen this has all been about opportunism. They knew they could get Michael on his own and then use…” Max trailed off as Michael had before but as before Liz noticed a furtive look towards Maria before he continued. “They knew now to get the three of us guys in one place, away from any witnesses. I don’t think they will try anything in town…too great a chance of being discovered.”
“As I mentioned earlier I don’t think this is a case of the FBI or some sort of alien task force looking for us in particular but more a pissing contest between two departments that has nothing to do with us.” Max concluded. “I know they have Alex but we can get him back. As far as they and anyone else knows we are just normal high school students and I think we should act as such.”
“Our mom and dad are away so everyone can stay at our house if they like.” Isabel offered.
Liz nodded. “That sounds fine. Maria and I will have to make a couple of quick calls to our parents. We’ll tell them I am staying with Maria and Maria can say she is staying with me.
Max, Michael and Isabel stood in silence as Liz manoeuvred Maria off to the side to use her cell phone.
“We’ll get him back Isabel.” Max tried to reassure his sister.
“I know.” Isabel nodded with more confidence than she actually had. “I’m just worried they will hurt him before we can get to him.” Isabel turned to look at her brother. “What must he be thinking? He’s all alone Max.”
Max just stared back at his sister for a moment before replying. “I don’t know if you heard what Alex said to me when we were leaving the house the morning after you told him our secret. He said he would do anything to repay me for saving Liz.”
Isabel continued to stand in silence as tears began to build in her eyes.
“I’ve realised that even if all three of us were alien Alex would have insisted on being the one that stayed behind, he’s that sort of guy.” Max stepped forward and took his sisters hand. “I think I am beginning to understand what you see in him and I can only say to you what I said to Maria, I promise that whatever it takes we’ll get him back.”
When Liz and Maria had finished their calls they went to move back towards their friends but Liz stopped Maria with a gentle touch on her arm. “Maria, I know this is very upsetting for all of us but there is something I think you should know. We can’t blame them for what they did, especially not Michael. As worried as I am about Alex I think he was right with the plan that he came up with and I think Max and Michael were right to carry it out.”
“I know.” Maria nodded through her tears. “But it still hurts to know what has happened to him.”
“There’s one more thing.” Liz leaned in towards Maria and whispered in her ear for a moment.
The three aliens watched as Liz and Maria returned to the group.
“So what do we do now?” Liz questioned.
“If you girls head back to our house,” Max nodded towards Isabel. “Michael and I will follow you but once we get there we were hoping to borrow your car Maria as my jeep is still out at the trailer park.”
Maria simply nodded.
“Then we’ll drop off the SUV, making sure it’s parked illegally and not too far from the sheriff’s office so they can find out whom it belongs to and call them to pick it up.” Max continued. “Hopefully we can follow them in Maria’s car and they will lead us to where they are keeping Alex.”
“I’m not keen to just sit around and wait.” Isabel added. “Shouldn’t I be with you in case you go in to get Alex?”
“Isabel I promise we will call if and when we find Alex but we need you back at home as you have to try and dream walk Alex.” Max reassured his sister. “We need to keep all of our options open in case our car plan doesn’t work.”
Seeing his sister finally understood her part in the plan Max turned to head towards the SUV. As Michael turned to follow he felt a small hand take hold on his arm, causing him to look back. He found Maria standing at his side.
“Why did you call Max and Alex?” She asked softly.
“I told you, they had a gun to my head.” Michael tried to avoid eye contact, choosing to look at the floor instead.
Maria shook her head in disagreement. “You might keep yourself closed off most of the time but the one thing you can’t hide is how you feel about Max and Isabel…about how protective you are of them. It would have taken more than a gun to your head for you to help them capture Max.”
Michael didn’t know what to reply to Maria’s statement so he stood in silence.
“Was it me?” Maria’s words came out in little more than a whisper, tears were now falling down her beautiful face. “Did they use me to get you to call Max?”
“Why would you think that?” Michael asked, feeling nervous at where this questioning was heading.
“I didn’t.” Maria replied. “I was unsure why you would bring Max and Alex into the kidnapping when I knew you were the type to sacrifice yourself. It was Liz who worked out what they did…what you did.”
“It’s no big deal.” Michael suddenly felt very uncomfortable. “I still got Alex captured didn’t I so don’t go pinning any medals on me.”
“I wish you had let them take me rather than Alex but I appreciate what you did for me.” Maria reached up onto her tip toes and kissed Michael gently on the cheek.
As Maria turned and walked off to join the two girls that had watched the scene play out Michael watched the petit girl walk away. She was so small and so fragile in his eyes that he just wanted to pick her up and hold on to her, never letting go. “I couldn’t let them hurt you.” He whispered to himself as he watched Maria climb into her car and drive away.
To be continued…
Chapter 15
Isabel was still sitting at the kitchen table when she checked her watch. She slowly shook her head and admonished herself for her current state of affairs. She couldn’t believe she was sitting indoors clock watching as she impatiently awaited the return of Alex.
She could still feel where his lips had been pressed against hers from earlier. From what little she had seen of Alex she was already getting the idea that she would have to do most of the running…to be the one who always made the first move. That had all been shot to hell, she was pleased to realise, with Alex’s actions before he left. It seemed he was only reticent when he was unsure of how things stood. Now that she had given him the hint that they were getting close it seemed he was willing to make his own decisions, his own moves.
Things were moving so fast that under any other circumstances she would have wanted to take a step back…to think things through but aside from these being anything but normal circumstances she was also aware that she was dealing with someone who, despite appearances, was anything but the norm.
There was something about Alex that played on her mind constantly. It wasn’t for appearances sake that she wanted to spend time with him nor was it an infatuation thing. What is was, plain and simple, was a feeling of Alex being the one. Isabel didn’t know how she knew it…she just did. She couldn’t have explained her feelings to anyone else if her life depended on it but the fact remained she had never felt more comfortable in someone’s presence as she had done around Alex in recent days. She was even feeling differently from how she felt about Max and Michael, which came as somewhat of a relief.
Previously Isabel had always had to two levels of feelings when it came to the male sex. Level one was how she felt about Max, Michael and her dad. She loved them as family and always felt comfortable when they were around. Her second level encompassed the remaining men on the planet, which was heading towards three billion, give or take a few.
Now, for the first time ever, there was the creation of a third level. In that third level she had gone from one extreme to another with the fact that unlike level two and its three billion occupants level three had one resident and it was something she was slowly coming to terms with.
The only thing that she could conclude from her thoughts was it wasn’t one thing she liked about him…it was everything. He wasn’t the best looking guy she had ever seen but she certainly liked the way he looked. He wasn’t the most popular guy in school but what she had gathered in recent days was she didn’t care what anyone else thought about him as she wanted him to do things for her and not anyone else.
Isabel blushed at that thought despite the fact she was sitting alone in her kitchen. There wasn’t any hidden meaning or innuendo in her last thought. She just meant she wanted him to sit with her and not with anyone else. She wanted him to talk to her and not anyone else. And finally she realised she wanted him to think of her and not anyone else.
A sudden knock at the front door pulled her out of her reverie. She checked her watch again and even though it wasn’t too late it was still quite late in the evening to be calling. She knew it couldn’t have been Max or Alex as they would have simply opened the door and come in.
Isabel pulled open the front door and found Liz and Maria standing on her doorstep. “Hi, if you guys are looking for Max and Michael they are over at Michael’s trailer fixing a problem.” It was then that Isabel saw the perplexed looks on the girl’s faces.
“So you don’t know anything either?” Liz questioned.
Isabel shook her head. “Sorry? I’m not sure I follow.”
“Max called Liz and asked where I was.” Maria started to explain. “When Liz said I was with her he asked that we come over and pick you up and meet them at the quarry.”
“Now?” Isabel asked incredulously. “Did they say what’s wrong?”
Liz shook her head. “Max said there is nothing to worry about but he wanted us there as soon as possible.”
“What about Alex? Did he mention Alex?” Isabel didn’t like the sound of this. “They were supposed to be over at Michael’s fixing a problem with the trailer. Why have they gone from being at the trailer to wanting us out at the quarry at this time of night?”
“Isabel, the longer we stand and wait around the less we are going to find out.” Liz tried to reassure the tall girl. “Let’s just head out to the quarry and find out the answers to all of those questions. I’m sure there’s nothing wrong”
Isabel smiled at Liz’s comforting words. “I suppose I am overreacting a little.” Isabel grabbed her coat and pulled the front door closed behind her as she moved to Maria’s jetta that was parked outside the house.
“And while we are on our way you can tell us all about you and Alex.” Maria smiled back over her shoulder at Isabel. “You can start with the kiss.”
Isabel shook her head as she climbed into the back of the car. “I can’t believe he told you about that already.”
“You can’t blame Alex.” Liz turned to smile at Isabel. “After all our hard work it is ingrained into Alex to make sure he tells us about every aspect of his life, especially the good stuff.”
“And has there been much…good stuff?” Isabel tried to ask nonchalantly.
“Are you kidding?” Maria looked at Isabel in her rear view mirror. “If it wasn’t for the fact that both Liz and I hold him down every birthday and plant a big smacker on each cheek he’d have never come into contact with a female pair of lips, unless you count his mom…which we don’t.”
“You hold him down?” Isabel laughed out loud.
Liz nodded. “If the truth be told he doesn’t resist very much.”
“You can’t stop the inevitable.” Maria cut in.
After a few minutes the girls pulled up at the quarry to find Max and Michael standing over near the quarries edge. They looked to be deep in conversation. When the sound of the approaching car reached them they turned to watch as the girls climbed out and approached.
“Where’s Alex?” Isabel immediately questioned when they were within talking distance. When she saw Michael throw Max a brief look she knew something was terribly wrong.
Isabel looked to Liz and Maria and she realised they were unable to read the silent look Michael gave Max in the same way that she did. “Max what’s wrong? You’re scaring me. I asked you where Alex is now where is he?”
At Isabel’s change in demeanour and her insistent questioning Liz and Maria had caught onto the fact that something was desperately wrong.
“Now you have to stay calm while I tell you what happened.” Max began. “You’re not going to like what I have to tell you but I promise we can sort this out.”
“Max!” Isabel stepped forward, her very look insisting that Max tell them what was going on.
“I got captured by some armed men earlier.” Michael cut in. “I wouldn’t have told them anything but…” Michael trailer off as he threw a momentary glance towards Maria before turning away. “They got me to call Max and Alex so I could bring them over to my trailer where they had me held.”
“Where’s Alex?” Tears started to build in Maria’s eyes. “Why isn’t he with you?”
“The four men handcuffed us and were going to take us with them. They left us alone for a couple of minutes and Alex came up with a plan.” Max explained.
“What sort of plan?” Liz questioned while trying to hold her feelings in check.
“Alex said that as we were different they would find out what we were if they carried out any tests or experiments on us.” Max continued. “As Alex is human he said that if they were going to capture one of us it should be him.”
“And you let him stay behind?” Maria voice became broken as she fought back the urge to lose control completely. “Why didn’t you bring him with you? You’re the ones with special powers.”
Max went to reach for Maria but pulled his arm back. “Maria it wasn’t easy for us to do what we did but it was Alex who insisted that we leave him. We had four armed men holding us at gunpoint so we had very little chance of escape. Alex decided he would make a diversion while Michael and I broke free. We promised we would go back for him…”
“That’s very big of you.” Maria spat out. “Meanwhile Alex is off somewhere having who knows what done to him.” Maria turned to Michael who was still standing with his back to the group. “And you called him over so rather than them having just you they then had you, Max and Alex. What was your thinking behind that great idea? Oh no, that’s right…you only think of yourselves.”
“That’s enough Maria!” Liz exclaimed. Maria turned on Liz ready to unload all her pent up anger but when she saw the resolute look on her friends face it stopped her before she began. “I think there are things that Max and Michael haven’t told us yet.” Liz walked forward and placed a comforting arm around her friend. “Let’s wait until we know all the facts and then we can sort out how we are going to get Alex back.”
“From what we can gather they aren’t exactly sure what they are looking for.” Seeing the uncertain looks on everyone’s faces Max continued. “It seems the air force is looking for something that happened in the Crashdown in September.”
“The shooting.” Liz whispered, staring at Max.
Max nodded. “The thing is they don’t really know what happened…well at least the men who were sent to capture us don’t.” Max turned to look at Maria specifically. “I know you might hate us right now but it was the best we could do under the circumstances. I know it won’t be of any comfort but if they do take a look at Alex they aren’t going to find anything different about him. I promise Maria we will find him and bring him home.”
“What if they torture him?” Everyone turned to look at Isabel. She had wrapped her arms around herself even though it was a mild night and she was wearing a jacket. She had remained silent since they had learned about Alex and she now appeared to be shutting down to everything around her. Her eyes were glazed and unfocused. She wasn’t looking at anything in particular and it would have seemed she had drifted off to another place until she spoke.
“I don’t think it will come to that.” Max tried to offer some comfort. “From what Michael over heard and what we saw this isn’t someone hunting us specifically this is someone trying to get one over on the FBI.”
“The FBI?” Liz echoed.
Michael turned slowly to rejoin the group, his face unreadable. “From what I was able to over hear from the sergeant who was leading the team it seems their commanding officer is solely interested in getting one over on the FBI by finding out what happened in the Crashdown before they do. As they had no idea what they were looking for they left the three of us alone so Max and I were able to use our powers to break free.” Michael’s voice was becoming more and more hushed as he spoke. “We knew we couldn’t all break free as they had guns so Alex volunteered to act as a diversion so Max and I could get away. If there was anyway I could have taken his place I would have.”
“How can we get him back?” Liz tried to focus on the positive.
“Michael and I have been talking and we were thinking we might be able to get Isabel to dream walk Alex and pick up on where he is.” Max explained. “It’s the best we can do at the moment.” Max hesitated for a moment before continuing. “Also Alex came up with the idea of informing the sheriff.”
“What?” Liz asked in shock. “I thought we wanted to stay away from him?”
“We do normally.” Max nodded. “But as Alex said it can’t be legal to kidnap three high school students. If we get the sheriff and our parents involved they can kick up a fuss and we may be able to get Alex back that way.”
“The car.” Michael’s voice was barely audible.
“What?” Liz frowned. “What about a car?”
“We escaped in one of their SUV’s.” Michael pointed off to the side. “It’s over there. If we place it somewhere it can be found we might be able to follow it back to where they have Alex.”
“That’s a great idea.” Liz enthused. “That might be the best way for us to get back to Alex.”
“What are we going to do now?” Maria asked.
“From what we have seen this has all been about opportunism. They knew they could get Michael on his own and then use…” Max trailed off as Michael had before but as before Liz noticed a furtive look towards Maria before he continued. “They knew now to get the three of us guys in one place, away from any witnesses. I don’t think they will try anything in town…too great a chance of being discovered.”
“As I mentioned earlier I don’t think this is a case of the FBI or some sort of alien task force looking for us in particular but more a pissing contest between two departments that has nothing to do with us.” Max concluded. “I know they have Alex but we can get him back. As far as they and anyone else knows we are just normal high school students and I think we should act as such.”
“Our mom and dad are away so everyone can stay at our house if they like.” Isabel offered.
Liz nodded. “That sounds fine. Maria and I will have to make a couple of quick calls to our parents. We’ll tell them I am staying with Maria and Maria can say she is staying with me.
Max, Michael and Isabel stood in silence as Liz manoeuvred Maria off to the side to use her cell phone.
“We’ll get him back Isabel.” Max tried to reassure his sister.
“I know.” Isabel nodded with more confidence than she actually had. “I’m just worried they will hurt him before we can get to him.” Isabel turned to look at her brother. “What must he be thinking? He’s all alone Max.”
Max just stared back at his sister for a moment before replying. “I don’t know if you heard what Alex said to me when we were leaving the house the morning after you told him our secret. He said he would do anything to repay me for saving Liz.”
Isabel continued to stand in silence as tears began to build in her eyes.
“I’ve realised that even if all three of us were alien Alex would have insisted on being the one that stayed behind, he’s that sort of guy.” Max stepped forward and took his sisters hand. “I think I am beginning to understand what you see in him and I can only say to you what I said to Maria, I promise that whatever it takes we’ll get him back.”
When Liz and Maria had finished their calls they went to move back towards their friends but Liz stopped Maria with a gentle touch on her arm. “Maria, I know this is very upsetting for all of us but there is something I think you should know. We can’t blame them for what they did, especially not Michael. As worried as I am about Alex I think he was right with the plan that he came up with and I think Max and Michael were right to carry it out.”
“I know.” Maria nodded through her tears. “But it still hurts to know what has happened to him.”
“There’s one more thing.” Liz leaned in towards Maria and whispered in her ear for a moment.
The three aliens watched as Liz and Maria returned to the group.
“So what do we do now?” Liz questioned.
“If you girls head back to our house,” Max nodded towards Isabel. “Michael and I will follow you but once we get there we were hoping to borrow your car Maria as my jeep is still out at the trailer park.”
Maria simply nodded.
“Then we’ll drop off the SUV, making sure it’s parked illegally and not too far from the sheriff’s office so they can find out whom it belongs to and call them to pick it up.” Max continued. “Hopefully we can follow them in Maria’s car and they will lead us to where they are keeping Alex.”
“I’m not keen to just sit around and wait.” Isabel added. “Shouldn’t I be with you in case you go in to get Alex?”
“Isabel I promise we will call if and when we find Alex but we need you back at home as you have to try and dream walk Alex.” Max reassured his sister. “We need to keep all of our options open in case our car plan doesn’t work.”
Seeing his sister finally understood her part in the plan Max turned to head towards the SUV. As Michael turned to follow he felt a small hand take hold on his arm, causing him to look back. He found Maria standing at his side.
“Why did you call Max and Alex?” She asked softly.
“I told you, they had a gun to my head.” Michael tried to avoid eye contact, choosing to look at the floor instead.
Maria shook her head in disagreement. “You might keep yourself closed off most of the time but the one thing you can’t hide is how you feel about Max and Isabel…about how protective you are of them. It would have taken more than a gun to your head for you to help them capture Max.”
Michael didn’t know what to reply to Maria’s statement so he stood in silence.
“Was it me?” Maria’s words came out in little more than a whisper, tears were now falling down her beautiful face. “Did they use me to get you to call Max?”
“Why would you think that?” Michael asked, feeling nervous at where this questioning was heading.
“I didn’t.” Maria replied. “I was unsure why you would bring Max and Alex into the kidnapping when I knew you were the type to sacrifice yourself. It was Liz who worked out what they did…what you did.”
“It’s no big deal.” Michael suddenly felt very uncomfortable. “I still got Alex captured didn’t I so don’t go pinning any medals on me.”
“I wish you had let them take me rather than Alex but I appreciate what you did for me.” Maria reached up onto her tip toes and kissed Michael gently on the cheek.
As Maria turned and walked off to join the two girls that had watched the scene play out Michael watched the petit girl walk away. She was so small and so fragile in his eyes that he just wanted to pick her up and hold on to her, never letting go. “I couldn’t let them hurt you.” He whispered to himself as he watched Maria climb into her car and drive away.
To be continued…
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StargazerUK
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 157
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Into the Lion's Den Pt16. A/I & CC PG-13 05-May-04
Hi again, I find I have time on my hands at the moment so I am whizzing through these chapters, try to keep up lol. Cheers, David / StargazerUK
Chapter 16
“Are you sure you have the right guy?” Alex asked. “I mean I’m pretty unremarkable and I am very easily confused with almost any other male resident in Roswell.”
The airmen who were currently marching Alex down a bland, grey coloured hallway remained silent. It had been little over half an hour since Max and Michael had escaped, leaving the special ops team with just one prisoner rather than the three they had been sent out to collect.
Eventually Alex was brought to a halt by his guards beside a large set of closed double doors. When they stopped it became apparent that someone on the other side of the doors was shouting at the top of their lungs. Despite his current predicament Alex couldn’t help but think he didn’t envy being the recipient of that tongue lashing.
After several more minutes of listening to the one way tirade one of the closed doors opened and a very flushed looking sergeant Fletcher appeared. “Bring him in.” He ordered.
Alex was manhandled by his guards and manoeuvred into what turned out to be an office. As he was brought to a standstill in front of an oversized desk Alex could see a large man with his back to him. It was a reasonable assumption that this was the commanding officer as he had very ornate insignia on his shoulder flashes as well as the fact that it was apparent that he was the one who had been tearing into the sergeant.
When he turned round Alex was unsure what he was supposed to say or do. He had always been taught to be respectful of authority but the fact remained that these men had kidnapped him. Indignation seemed the right way to go.
“Are you in charge?” Alex began. “I need to speak to whoever is in charge here! I have been telling these guys there has been a huge mistake but no one seems to be listening to me.”
The colonel remained silent despite Alex’s question. After a long pause a smile slowly spread across his face, which made Alex feel very uncomfortable. “It’s good to meet you Mr Whitman. I’m sorry your friends couldn’t make it but we’ll work with what we have and then move on from there.”
“I really don’t want to appear rude.” Alex was still going for a lack of knowledge on his behalf. “But are you out of your mind? Why on earth would you have armed men kidnap three high school students? What are you hoping to achieve and more to the point how do you intend to get away with what you have done?”
With a nod of his head the colonel instructed the guards to sit Alex in one of the chairs facing the desk. As he was sat down Alex watched as the colonel moved round the table and positioned himself directly in front of his captive before leaning back onto the desk. “Let me tell you a little story, some of which I believe you will already know.”
“Is it the one about the girl and the three bears or is it about the girl who lived with the seven little men?” Alex turned to the two guards standing either side of him with a smile. “I hope it’s the one with the bears.”
Despite Alex’s facetious remarks the colonel began. “In November I was attending a cross-services briefing, something I am forced to attend once every month. Now let me tell you that these are the most boring, pointless meetings you could ever imagine. That was until this meeting in particular when we had a new and very interesting item to discuss.”
Again with a silent flick of his head the colonel ordered the two airmen into action. This time they left the room, closing the door behind them, leaving Alex alone with the colonel and the sergeant. “We were given a report with regards to a suspected shooting that occurred a few weeks earlier at a diner in the town of Roswell, New Mexico. Not something we would normally be briefed on but it seemed this one had a strange occurrence.”
“Have we reached the part where I am supposed to know what you are talking about because I have to tell you I am still drawing a blank?” Alex was still trying to feign disinterest.
“Patience Mr Whitman, we are getting there.” The senior man replied calmly. “The strange occurrence to which I am referring is the shooting of a waitress who, only moments later, was able to get up off of the floor where she fell with little more than a tomato ketchup stain on her uniform.”
Alex couldn’t help but notice that the airmen standing by his side tried to hide his reaction to this revelation, something he was unable to do. It seemed only the colonel knew of what had happened in the Crashdown. “So what are you telling me?” Alex questioned. “It sounds like this waitress simply fell over and broke a bottle of ketchup over herself. I still don’t know what this has to do with me or my friends.”
“Oh I think you do.” Colonel Matthews nodded. “The waitress in question is Liz Parker, your best friend by all accounts. The reports we have been able to get our hands on are leading us in a very interesting direction.”
“Well that is the first thing you have gotten right today. I am Liz Parkers best friend and as her best friend I can tell you she most certainly didn’t get shot, I’m sure she would have told me.” Alex joked. “People don’t just get shot and miraculously recover. If Liz Parker was knocked to the ground and was then able to get back up unscathed I think it was just what it suggests…not a shooting.”
“Now you see that is where we have a problem.” The large man leaned in towards Alex. “We have several witnesses who heard a gun shot. We have a couple of witnesses who even claim to know what direction the gun was fired but no bullet was found nor was there any damage done by a discharged round.”
Alex aped the colonel’s movement and leaned forward. “I’m still not sure what you are suggesting. From what you have just said it sounds like the gun, if there was a gun, had blanks.”
“I would agree.” Matthews got up from his position on the desk and moved over to a side cupboard. Using a key to unlock the cupboard he pulled out a transparent bag which he brought over in front of Alex. “The problem I have Mr Whitman and the reason I am so convinced about what went on in the Crashdown that day is what I have in this bag.”
Alex stared at the bag. He could already tell what it was but he was concentrating on not giving his feelings away.
“This is the uniform of Liz Parker. I managed to get my hands on it although my friends at the FBI won’t be happy when they find out.” He laughed out loud at his own little joke. “This uniform is covered in tomato ketchup and also a large amount of blood. Despite this when the police and paramedics showed up no one was reported shot and no one received treatment for a gunshot wound.”
The colonel returned the bag to its hideaway and relocked the cupboard before returning to Alex. “I’ve read the report from your local sheriff. He has some outlandish ideas about what went on, as do some of the panel from the FBI. Roswell being Roswell has fuelled some strange stories and myths over the years since 1947.”
“Are you sure you don’t want the FBI to handle this?” Alex questioned. “Because I’ve watched a lot of the X-files and this sounds right up Mulder and Scully’s street.”
The colonel came and sat beside Alex. “Do you want to know what I think?” Alex remained silent knowing they were getting to the crux of the matter so he simply nodded. “There was a report that one or maybe two teenage boys were in the Crashdown the day of the shooting.”
“Alleged shooting.” Alex cut in.
The colonel smiled. “Alleged shooting.” He echoed. “One of them was seen to attend to Miss Parker before making his escape. They were gone by the time the sheriff and paramedics showed up.”
“Your point being?” Alex was trying his hardest to remain calm and not give anything away.
“My point is I think that one of you three boys did something to Miss Parker. I think that by whatever means you managed to repair the damage done when that young girl was shot and then you left before anyone could question your actions.”
“What?”
The colonel turned in his chair to look at the sergeant who had let slip his amazement.
“Sorry Sir.” The sergeant quickly stood to attention. The colonel refocused on Alex.
“You see there are some people who say that all stories and myths have some basis in fact. With the 1947 crash occurring in Roswell who’s to say what goes on in that town now.”
Alex tried to look as surprised as he possibly could. “Let me get this straight. You think that aliens really crashed in Roswell in 1947. You think they are still living there now and most incredibly of all you think Liz Parker really got shot and that an alien teenage boy saved her?” Alex turned in his chair to face the sergeant to his side. “Don’t you have to take some kind of mental competency exam when you join the air force?”
The colonel started to laugh, which was not what Alex was expecting. “Very good Mr Whitman but we will see if you are still so humorous when we have finished with you.”
Those words sent a shiver down Alex’s spine. This wasn’t good.
“Sir, might I have a word with you outside?” The sergeant questioned.
The two men stepped outside. This time the sergeant sent the two airmen in to keep Alex company after the disappearing act the boys pulled last time. “Permission to speak freely sir?”
The colonel nodded.
“Sir, are you serious? You have had us attempt to kidnap three high school students on the strength of some memos and rumours from the FBI?” The sergeant asked calmly but he was clearly perplexed by his superior’s actions. “When you sent us on this mission the only thing you told us was it was in connection to a shooting in Roswell. Despite not understanding the air forces interest in a local shooting I was happy to carry out your orders, as always, but to find out you think these young men are somehow involved in something alien related has me lost for words.”
“Are you questioning my orders or my competency?” The colonel took a step towards the sergeant.
“No sir but I don’t understand how you will justify our actions when everyone, including the teenager’s parents, find out what we have done.” The sergeant was fighting to make his feelings known without over stepping the mark.
“Son.” The colonel placed a hand on the sergeant’s shoulder as a reassuring gesture. “When we show the world what we have found in Roswell not only will no one give any thought to the means by which we made our discovery but we will be famous beyond our wildest dreams.”
Those words did nothing to comfort the sergeant who was now in inner turmoil. It was looking more and more like his commanding officer had lost it and it looked like the teenage boy they currently held captive was going to pay for it.
“Take the Whitman boy down to the lab.” The colonel cut in on the sergeants thoughts. “I want these tests started right away.”
Isabel replaced the phone on its cradle. “That was Max. One of the deputies has been and checked the car over. He’s radioed the information in so all we can do now is wait to see if they take the bait.”
“It’s about time. They’ve been out there for hours.” Maria paused for a moment before speaking. “What about the dream walking?” She asked. “Should you give it a try?”
Isabel shook her head despondently. “I know it has been a few hours now and that it’s nearly 7am but I’m not sure it’s time yet. They may not have allowed Alex to sleep yet.”
The hidden meaning of Isabel’s words was not lost on any of the girls. They all knew that if Alex wasn’t sleeping it probably meant he was being tested on or worse. That thought sent all three girls cold. If they were just going to run blood tests and the like on Alex it wouldn’t be too much of a problem but the worrying thing was whether they would take it further.
For one brief moment Isabel allowed herself to think of the possible things they might do to test Alex and the thought that they might intentionally injure him to force him to heal himself was more than she could stomach. They didn’t know Alex had no alien abilities so if they did harm him there might not be any way to save him.
Isabel stood up from where she had been sitting on her bed causing Liz and Maria to look at her with concern. “I just need to get something from downstairs.”
The two girls watched as Isabel left and Maria immediately looked towards Liz. “Should we go after her?”
Liz slowly shook her head. “Let’s give her a few moments. I’m sure she is worried about Alex as much as we are so she probably just needs to clear her head.”
“I knew Alex had a thing for Isabel but I didn’t realise the strength of Isabel’s feelings.” Maria offered sadly.
“I don’t think she did either.” Liz replied softly. “From what I have seen and heard Isabel has spent most of her time keeping people out. With her desire to let Alex know their secret I think she finally decided to open up to someone and as soon as that has happened along comes the air force to kidnap Alex. She’s probably feeling very guilty right now, not that she should.”
“Can we do anything to help?” Maria asked. “We don’t want her to think she is on her own, we’re all in this together.”
“We will.” Liz nodded. “But the sooner we get Alex back the better for all of us. Max has my cell phone so they’ll call us when they have any news.”
Isabel sat on the couch and slowly looked around the room. She hadn’t known what to do with herself so she had spent the last few minutes wandering the ground floor of the house. Unsurprisingly she found that she ended up in the den…Alex’s room.
As she continued to look around she saw a sweatshirt that Alex had been wearing the day before. Lifting herself off of the couch she reached over and picked up the top. She held it to her face, breathing in the smell of Alex. It was a citrus smell that she could only assume was from some kind of body spray or deodorant, no doubt bought by Liz or Maria as it didn’t smell like the kind of thing a mother would buy her son or the sort of thing Alex would buy himself.
“Put it on.” A soft voice told her.
Isabel turned and saw Liz and Maria standing in the doorway to the room. For a split second she felt embarrassed and vulnerable when she was found in such a compromising position but the look on the two girl’s faces told her she had nothing to feel sorry about.
“I was just wandering around and ended up here.” Isabel offered. “Then I saw Alex’s sweatshirt and it made me feel closer to him somehow.”
“Which is why we think you should put it on.” Liz moved further into the room followed by Maria. “We need every advantage we can get when we come to try and contacting Alex. From what Max tells me the stronger your connection to a person the better the chances of you being able to dream walk them. If having your mind filled with thoughts of Alex improves our chances then we’re all for it.”
Isabel dropped her gaze for a moment. “You won’t think I’m a little weird?”
“Isabel…sweetie.” Maria cut in. “What do you think Alex would think knowing that his bedroom is full of three lovely babes awaiting his return and that one of those babes, the one he is really interested in, is wearing his sweatshirt to help her think of him?”
“If you put it like that.” Isabel pulled the top over her head and put her arms through the sleeves, pulling it into place.
“Wait until he gets a load of you in his top, he’ll have a heart attack.” Maria laughed.
All three girls smiled for a moment before the seriousness of their situation brought them back to their current predicament. Isabel looked from Liz to Maria and back again. “I think it’s time.”
“OK.” Liz said nervously. “Where should we do it?”
Isabel glanced about the room. “Here’s as good as anywhere.”
Maria quickly picked up a couple of bits of paper and a book that was sitting on the couch to make room for Isabel. Once the area was clear she lowered herself onto the couch and got herself comfortable. Suddenly Isabel leaned forward, resting on her elbows. “I almost forgot I need a picture of Alex.”
Maria quickly dashed out of the room and ran upstairs. A few moments later her footstep increased in noise as she ran back down from Isabel’s room. She burst back into the den, breathless. “Sorry.” She panted. “I had to get this from my bag.” Maria held out a photo of her, Liz and Alex. The photo had been taken the previous summer when they had spent the day having a picnic.
Isabel eyed the picture for a moment. “We’ll have to get you a proper picture of Alex when he gets back.” Liz said cutting in on Isabel’s thoughts.
“I’d like that.” Isabel said softly as she lay back down on the couch.
“Do we have to do anything?” Liz questioned. “Do you need anything from us? We’ll do anything to help.”
“I know.” Isabel smiled. “And no you can’t do anything, other than keep me company.”
“We can definitely do that.” Maria said trying to be as encouraging as possible.
Isabel started to concentrate on the matter at hand. She let everything else around her slip away until the only thing she could see was Alex in the photo. She slowed her breathing until she was in a relaxed state. Slowly, as she started to drift off, Isabel gently touched the photo before whispering. “Let me in Alex.”
Almost immediately Isabel found she had to shield her eyes from an over powering bright light. Slowly her eyes began to adjust so the intensity of the glare seemed to be subsiding. So over powering was the initial effect of the lights that Isabel almost didn’t register that she had made it into Alex’s dream.
As she grew more and more accustom to her surroundings Isabel realised that she had to move fast as she didn’t know how long she would have before being interrupted. She discovered the cause of the over powering lights, the ceiling was made entirely of clear Perspex. This allowed the numerous fluorescent lights to shower the rooms below in a bright, white light.
Isabel realised she was in a corridor but it was unlike anything she had ever seen. It appeared that as well as the ceilings being made of Perspex so were the walls and doors. It was then that she realised she was surrounded by what appeared to be holding cells…it was some kind of prison. With the walls and ceilings completely transparent it meant there was nowhere for the occupants to hide from their captors.
As Isabel glanced round the nearest rooms they all appeared to be empty. She moved slowly along the hallway, checking each room as it came within easy reach but as she neared the end she had a sudden fear that they were all empty and she wouldn’t find Alex.
Finally Isabel reached the last cell. She was all set to give up on this dream walk as she was unable to find Alex when something caught her eye. Unlike the previous cells the last one wasn’t completely empty. All the cells had what passed for a bed and like in all the other cells it was made from clear plastic as well. However unlike all the other chambers this one had a white sheet thrown onto the bed in crumpled heap.
Once again Isabel thought about leaving as the sheet looked as though it had been discarded and was of no use to anyone until just before she turned to leave and she saw the sheet move.
Despite it being the dream world Isabel froze. She didn’t dare move, she didn’t dare breathe…the only thing she could feel was her heart breaking when she realised what she was looking at.
She took a step forward, placing a hand on the clear glass as she watched the sheet slowly rise and fall, her own breathing falling in sync with the tired movement. As tears welled up in her eyes and flooded her face she summoned up the courage to confirm what she didn’t want to believe.
Wetting her dry lips she tried to speak but couldn’t. Not having time to work out why this dream world was so real she tried again, this time she was successful. Again she took a deep breath, closing her eyes to think about the only thing that mattered now as she forced herself to speak. “Alex?”
To be continued…
Chapter 16
“Are you sure you have the right guy?” Alex asked. “I mean I’m pretty unremarkable and I am very easily confused with almost any other male resident in Roswell.”
The airmen who were currently marching Alex down a bland, grey coloured hallway remained silent. It had been little over half an hour since Max and Michael had escaped, leaving the special ops team with just one prisoner rather than the three they had been sent out to collect.
Eventually Alex was brought to a halt by his guards beside a large set of closed double doors. When they stopped it became apparent that someone on the other side of the doors was shouting at the top of their lungs. Despite his current predicament Alex couldn’t help but think he didn’t envy being the recipient of that tongue lashing.
After several more minutes of listening to the one way tirade one of the closed doors opened and a very flushed looking sergeant Fletcher appeared. “Bring him in.” He ordered.
Alex was manhandled by his guards and manoeuvred into what turned out to be an office. As he was brought to a standstill in front of an oversized desk Alex could see a large man with his back to him. It was a reasonable assumption that this was the commanding officer as he had very ornate insignia on his shoulder flashes as well as the fact that it was apparent that he was the one who had been tearing into the sergeant.
When he turned round Alex was unsure what he was supposed to say or do. He had always been taught to be respectful of authority but the fact remained that these men had kidnapped him. Indignation seemed the right way to go.
“Are you in charge?” Alex began. “I need to speak to whoever is in charge here! I have been telling these guys there has been a huge mistake but no one seems to be listening to me.”
The colonel remained silent despite Alex’s question. After a long pause a smile slowly spread across his face, which made Alex feel very uncomfortable. “It’s good to meet you Mr Whitman. I’m sorry your friends couldn’t make it but we’ll work with what we have and then move on from there.”
“I really don’t want to appear rude.” Alex was still going for a lack of knowledge on his behalf. “But are you out of your mind? Why on earth would you have armed men kidnap three high school students? What are you hoping to achieve and more to the point how do you intend to get away with what you have done?”
With a nod of his head the colonel instructed the guards to sit Alex in one of the chairs facing the desk. As he was sat down Alex watched as the colonel moved round the table and positioned himself directly in front of his captive before leaning back onto the desk. “Let me tell you a little story, some of which I believe you will already know.”
“Is it the one about the girl and the three bears or is it about the girl who lived with the seven little men?” Alex turned to the two guards standing either side of him with a smile. “I hope it’s the one with the bears.”
Despite Alex’s facetious remarks the colonel began. “In November I was attending a cross-services briefing, something I am forced to attend once every month. Now let me tell you that these are the most boring, pointless meetings you could ever imagine. That was until this meeting in particular when we had a new and very interesting item to discuss.”
Again with a silent flick of his head the colonel ordered the two airmen into action. This time they left the room, closing the door behind them, leaving Alex alone with the colonel and the sergeant. “We were given a report with regards to a suspected shooting that occurred a few weeks earlier at a diner in the town of Roswell, New Mexico. Not something we would normally be briefed on but it seemed this one had a strange occurrence.”
“Have we reached the part where I am supposed to know what you are talking about because I have to tell you I am still drawing a blank?” Alex was still trying to feign disinterest.
“Patience Mr Whitman, we are getting there.” The senior man replied calmly. “The strange occurrence to which I am referring is the shooting of a waitress who, only moments later, was able to get up off of the floor where she fell with little more than a tomato ketchup stain on her uniform.”
Alex couldn’t help but notice that the airmen standing by his side tried to hide his reaction to this revelation, something he was unable to do. It seemed only the colonel knew of what had happened in the Crashdown. “So what are you telling me?” Alex questioned. “It sounds like this waitress simply fell over and broke a bottle of ketchup over herself. I still don’t know what this has to do with me or my friends.”
“Oh I think you do.” Colonel Matthews nodded. “The waitress in question is Liz Parker, your best friend by all accounts. The reports we have been able to get our hands on are leading us in a very interesting direction.”
“Well that is the first thing you have gotten right today. I am Liz Parkers best friend and as her best friend I can tell you she most certainly didn’t get shot, I’m sure she would have told me.” Alex joked. “People don’t just get shot and miraculously recover. If Liz Parker was knocked to the ground and was then able to get back up unscathed I think it was just what it suggests…not a shooting.”
“Now you see that is where we have a problem.” The large man leaned in towards Alex. “We have several witnesses who heard a gun shot. We have a couple of witnesses who even claim to know what direction the gun was fired but no bullet was found nor was there any damage done by a discharged round.”
Alex aped the colonel’s movement and leaned forward. “I’m still not sure what you are suggesting. From what you have just said it sounds like the gun, if there was a gun, had blanks.”
“I would agree.” Matthews got up from his position on the desk and moved over to a side cupboard. Using a key to unlock the cupboard he pulled out a transparent bag which he brought over in front of Alex. “The problem I have Mr Whitman and the reason I am so convinced about what went on in the Crashdown that day is what I have in this bag.”
Alex stared at the bag. He could already tell what it was but he was concentrating on not giving his feelings away.
“This is the uniform of Liz Parker. I managed to get my hands on it although my friends at the FBI won’t be happy when they find out.” He laughed out loud at his own little joke. “This uniform is covered in tomato ketchup and also a large amount of blood. Despite this when the police and paramedics showed up no one was reported shot and no one received treatment for a gunshot wound.”
The colonel returned the bag to its hideaway and relocked the cupboard before returning to Alex. “I’ve read the report from your local sheriff. He has some outlandish ideas about what went on, as do some of the panel from the FBI. Roswell being Roswell has fuelled some strange stories and myths over the years since 1947.”
“Are you sure you don’t want the FBI to handle this?” Alex questioned. “Because I’ve watched a lot of the X-files and this sounds right up Mulder and Scully’s street.”
The colonel came and sat beside Alex. “Do you want to know what I think?” Alex remained silent knowing they were getting to the crux of the matter so he simply nodded. “There was a report that one or maybe two teenage boys were in the Crashdown the day of the shooting.”
“Alleged shooting.” Alex cut in.
The colonel smiled. “Alleged shooting.” He echoed. “One of them was seen to attend to Miss Parker before making his escape. They were gone by the time the sheriff and paramedics showed up.”
“Your point being?” Alex was trying his hardest to remain calm and not give anything away.
“My point is I think that one of you three boys did something to Miss Parker. I think that by whatever means you managed to repair the damage done when that young girl was shot and then you left before anyone could question your actions.”
“What?”
The colonel turned in his chair to look at the sergeant who had let slip his amazement.
“Sorry Sir.” The sergeant quickly stood to attention. The colonel refocused on Alex.
“You see there are some people who say that all stories and myths have some basis in fact. With the 1947 crash occurring in Roswell who’s to say what goes on in that town now.”
Alex tried to look as surprised as he possibly could. “Let me get this straight. You think that aliens really crashed in Roswell in 1947. You think they are still living there now and most incredibly of all you think Liz Parker really got shot and that an alien teenage boy saved her?” Alex turned in his chair to face the sergeant to his side. “Don’t you have to take some kind of mental competency exam when you join the air force?”
The colonel started to laugh, which was not what Alex was expecting. “Very good Mr Whitman but we will see if you are still so humorous when we have finished with you.”
Those words sent a shiver down Alex’s spine. This wasn’t good.
“Sir, might I have a word with you outside?” The sergeant questioned.
The two men stepped outside. This time the sergeant sent the two airmen in to keep Alex company after the disappearing act the boys pulled last time. “Permission to speak freely sir?”
The colonel nodded.
“Sir, are you serious? You have had us attempt to kidnap three high school students on the strength of some memos and rumours from the FBI?” The sergeant asked calmly but he was clearly perplexed by his superior’s actions. “When you sent us on this mission the only thing you told us was it was in connection to a shooting in Roswell. Despite not understanding the air forces interest in a local shooting I was happy to carry out your orders, as always, but to find out you think these young men are somehow involved in something alien related has me lost for words.”
“Are you questioning my orders or my competency?” The colonel took a step towards the sergeant.
“No sir but I don’t understand how you will justify our actions when everyone, including the teenager’s parents, find out what we have done.” The sergeant was fighting to make his feelings known without over stepping the mark.
“Son.” The colonel placed a hand on the sergeant’s shoulder as a reassuring gesture. “When we show the world what we have found in Roswell not only will no one give any thought to the means by which we made our discovery but we will be famous beyond our wildest dreams.”
Those words did nothing to comfort the sergeant who was now in inner turmoil. It was looking more and more like his commanding officer had lost it and it looked like the teenage boy they currently held captive was going to pay for it.
“Take the Whitman boy down to the lab.” The colonel cut in on the sergeants thoughts. “I want these tests started right away.”
Isabel replaced the phone on its cradle. “That was Max. One of the deputies has been and checked the car over. He’s radioed the information in so all we can do now is wait to see if they take the bait.”
“It’s about time. They’ve been out there for hours.” Maria paused for a moment before speaking. “What about the dream walking?” She asked. “Should you give it a try?”
Isabel shook her head despondently. “I know it has been a few hours now and that it’s nearly 7am but I’m not sure it’s time yet. They may not have allowed Alex to sleep yet.”
The hidden meaning of Isabel’s words was not lost on any of the girls. They all knew that if Alex wasn’t sleeping it probably meant he was being tested on or worse. That thought sent all three girls cold. If they were just going to run blood tests and the like on Alex it wouldn’t be too much of a problem but the worrying thing was whether they would take it further.
For one brief moment Isabel allowed herself to think of the possible things they might do to test Alex and the thought that they might intentionally injure him to force him to heal himself was more than she could stomach. They didn’t know Alex had no alien abilities so if they did harm him there might not be any way to save him.
Isabel stood up from where she had been sitting on her bed causing Liz and Maria to look at her with concern. “I just need to get something from downstairs.”
The two girls watched as Isabel left and Maria immediately looked towards Liz. “Should we go after her?”
Liz slowly shook her head. “Let’s give her a few moments. I’m sure she is worried about Alex as much as we are so she probably just needs to clear her head.”
“I knew Alex had a thing for Isabel but I didn’t realise the strength of Isabel’s feelings.” Maria offered sadly.
“I don’t think she did either.” Liz replied softly. “From what I have seen and heard Isabel has spent most of her time keeping people out. With her desire to let Alex know their secret I think she finally decided to open up to someone and as soon as that has happened along comes the air force to kidnap Alex. She’s probably feeling very guilty right now, not that she should.”
“Can we do anything to help?” Maria asked. “We don’t want her to think she is on her own, we’re all in this together.”
“We will.” Liz nodded. “But the sooner we get Alex back the better for all of us. Max has my cell phone so they’ll call us when they have any news.”
Isabel sat on the couch and slowly looked around the room. She hadn’t known what to do with herself so she had spent the last few minutes wandering the ground floor of the house. Unsurprisingly she found that she ended up in the den…Alex’s room.
As she continued to look around she saw a sweatshirt that Alex had been wearing the day before. Lifting herself off of the couch she reached over and picked up the top. She held it to her face, breathing in the smell of Alex. It was a citrus smell that she could only assume was from some kind of body spray or deodorant, no doubt bought by Liz or Maria as it didn’t smell like the kind of thing a mother would buy her son or the sort of thing Alex would buy himself.
“Put it on.” A soft voice told her.
Isabel turned and saw Liz and Maria standing in the doorway to the room. For a split second she felt embarrassed and vulnerable when she was found in such a compromising position but the look on the two girl’s faces told her she had nothing to feel sorry about.
“I was just wandering around and ended up here.” Isabel offered. “Then I saw Alex’s sweatshirt and it made me feel closer to him somehow.”
“Which is why we think you should put it on.” Liz moved further into the room followed by Maria. “We need every advantage we can get when we come to try and contacting Alex. From what Max tells me the stronger your connection to a person the better the chances of you being able to dream walk them. If having your mind filled with thoughts of Alex improves our chances then we’re all for it.”
Isabel dropped her gaze for a moment. “You won’t think I’m a little weird?”
“Isabel…sweetie.” Maria cut in. “What do you think Alex would think knowing that his bedroom is full of three lovely babes awaiting his return and that one of those babes, the one he is really interested in, is wearing his sweatshirt to help her think of him?”
“If you put it like that.” Isabel pulled the top over her head and put her arms through the sleeves, pulling it into place.
“Wait until he gets a load of you in his top, he’ll have a heart attack.” Maria laughed.
All three girls smiled for a moment before the seriousness of their situation brought them back to their current predicament. Isabel looked from Liz to Maria and back again. “I think it’s time.”
“OK.” Liz said nervously. “Where should we do it?”
Isabel glanced about the room. “Here’s as good as anywhere.”
Maria quickly picked up a couple of bits of paper and a book that was sitting on the couch to make room for Isabel. Once the area was clear she lowered herself onto the couch and got herself comfortable. Suddenly Isabel leaned forward, resting on her elbows. “I almost forgot I need a picture of Alex.”
Maria quickly dashed out of the room and ran upstairs. A few moments later her footstep increased in noise as she ran back down from Isabel’s room. She burst back into the den, breathless. “Sorry.” She panted. “I had to get this from my bag.” Maria held out a photo of her, Liz and Alex. The photo had been taken the previous summer when they had spent the day having a picnic.
Isabel eyed the picture for a moment. “We’ll have to get you a proper picture of Alex when he gets back.” Liz said cutting in on Isabel’s thoughts.
“I’d like that.” Isabel said softly as she lay back down on the couch.
“Do we have to do anything?” Liz questioned. “Do you need anything from us? We’ll do anything to help.”
“I know.” Isabel smiled. “And no you can’t do anything, other than keep me company.”
“We can definitely do that.” Maria said trying to be as encouraging as possible.
Isabel started to concentrate on the matter at hand. She let everything else around her slip away until the only thing she could see was Alex in the photo. She slowed her breathing until she was in a relaxed state. Slowly, as she started to drift off, Isabel gently touched the photo before whispering. “Let me in Alex.”
Almost immediately Isabel found she had to shield her eyes from an over powering bright light. Slowly her eyes began to adjust so the intensity of the glare seemed to be subsiding. So over powering was the initial effect of the lights that Isabel almost didn’t register that she had made it into Alex’s dream.
As she grew more and more accustom to her surroundings Isabel realised that she had to move fast as she didn’t know how long she would have before being interrupted. She discovered the cause of the over powering lights, the ceiling was made entirely of clear Perspex. This allowed the numerous fluorescent lights to shower the rooms below in a bright, white light.
Isabel realised she was in a corridor but it was unlike anything she had ever seen. It appeared that as well as the ceilings being made of Perspex so were the walls and doors. It was then that she realised she was surrounded by what appeared to be holding cells…it was some kind of prison. With the walls and ceilings completely transparent it meant there was nowhere for the occupants to hide from their captors.
As Isabel glanced round the nearest rooms they all appeared to be empty. She moved slowly along the hallway, checking each room as it came within easy reach but as she neared the end she had a sudden fear that they were all empty and she wouldn’t find Alex.
Finally Isabel reached the last cell. She was all set to give up on this dream walk as she was unable to find Alex when something caught her eye. Unlike the previous cells the last one wasn’t completely empty. All the cells had what passed for a bed and like in all the other cells it was made from clear plastic as well. However unlike all the other chambers this one had a white sheet thrown onto the bed in crumpled heap.
Once again Isabel thought about leaving as the sheet looked as though it had been discarded and was of no use to anyone until just before she turned to leave and she saw the sheet move.
Despite it being the dream world Isabel froze. She didn’t dare move, she didn’t dare breathe…the only thing she could feel was her heart breaking when she realised what she was looking at.
She took a step forward, placing a hand on the clear glass as she watched the sheet slowly rise and fall, her own breathing falling in sync with the tired movement. As tears welled up in her eyes and flooded her face she summoned up the courage to confirm what she didn’t want to believe.
Wetting her dry lips she tried to speak but couldn’t. Not having time to work out why this dream world was so real she tried again, this time she was successful. Again she took a deep breath, closing her eyes to think about the only thing that mattered now as she forced herself to speak. “Alex?”
To be continued…
-
StargazerUK
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 157
- Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 2:01 pm
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Into the Lion's Den Pt17. A/I & CC PG-13 10-May-04
Chapter 17
“Alex?” Isabel called a second time. Again there was no reply.
Isabel placed her hand in front of the lock and with a small burst of power the door swung open. Certain aspects of this dream were unlike anything she had encountered before but others had remained the same. It seemed her abilities were still working which allowed her to enter the locked cell.
As she slowly moved across the cubicle to the bed she saw a more noticeable movement from under the sheet. Isabel began to doubt herself as she knew Alex was over six feet tall but the body of whoever was under the sheet was coiled so small and so tight it could almost have been a child under there.
“Alex?” Isabel asked a third time.
“Go away Isabel.” A broken voice barely whispered. “Please go away.”
Isabel felt her body start to shake as her worst nightmare was confirmed. “Alex please let me see you. I’m here to help you.”
“Isabel I don’t want you here…now please go before they come back.” Alex pulled the sheet tighter around his bent body.
“Alex why won’t you let me help you?” Isabel dropped to her knees beside the bed. “I only want to check you are OK and to help get you out of here.”
“I can’t have you see me like this.” Alex said after a long pause. “You need to stay away from me so they won’t come looking for you.”
“Alex you need to stop worrying about other people and let us worry about you.” Isabel reached over to make contact with his cloaked body but he pulled away from her touch.
Alex, despite his weaken state, became agitated. “Isabel I have asked you to leave. I want you to go now…just leave me alone!”
Isabel stood up, unsure what to make of Alex’s outburst. She understood that he was under a great deal of stress and she couldn’t imagine what he had been through but why was he so against her seeing him?
Suddenly Isabel’s own temper started to rise as she finally understood what was going on. She dropped back to her knees this time placing a firm hand on Alex’s body that was still hidden under the sheet. Alex moved again but this time Isabel held her hand in place. “I know what is going on here Alex and I won’t allow it.” She said firmly. “You’re already sacrificed yourself once for us and I am not going to let you do it again.”
“Isabel this is hard enough for me as it is without you interfering.” He said resolutely. “Please don’t make this any more difficult.”
“I won’t.” Even though Alex couldn’t see her Isabel shook her head. “I won’t let you do this alone. I’m not leaving here until you let me see you…until you tell me why you won’t let me help.”
“Because I’m scared!” Alex cried as he threw back the sheet. “Is that a good enough reason for you?”
Alex’s sudden movement caused Isabel to fall back onto the floor from where she had been kneeling. As she looked at Alex she could see he had managed to sit himself up on the bed and that was when she finally got a proper look at her beloved boy.
There were tears running down his cheeks and he had a look of utter defeat on his face. Isabel was so fixed on Alex’s face that it was only after a few moments that she began to register the difference in his appearance. His hair had been cut to a close crop and parts of the side of his head had been shaved completely. From what she could see he was naked from the waist up and she could see various bruises and abrasions covering his body.
Isabel realised quickly that she needed to reassure Alex. She needed him to understand that there was no shame in what he was feeling and that she was there for him no matter what.
“You silly boy.” She said softly as she lifted herself to her feet. “Of course you’re scared…so am I.”
Alex dropped his gaze at her words. “I didn’t want you to see me like this.” He murmured.
As tears threatened to fall down her face Isabel fought to keep it together for Alex’s sake. She sat on the edge of the bed, wrapped her arms around Alex and pulled him close. There was no reaction from Alex for a moment but slowly Isabel could feel his arms enclose around her and hold her tight. She then felt Alex’s body shake with tears as he let go of all that he had been holding in.
“I’m here for you sweetie.” Isabel managed to let out as she continued to fight her own tears. “We’re going to get you out and we are going to bring you home.”
They sat like this for several minutes. Isabel simply rocked Alex gently as she stroked the back of his head. Alex merely held on with what little strength he had as he continued to cry. After a while Alex’s tears began to die down and eventually he released his tight grip on Isabel but continued to have a loose hold on his beautiful companion. He leaned back slightly so he could look at her face.
“Am I that messed up?” Alex asked with a slight smile.
Isabel was surprised by Alex’s change in demeanour but she soon realised she shouldn’t have been. Humour was Alex’s defence mechanism so now that they were past the awkward stage Alex was going to be lifting the mood.
“Why would you say that?” Isabel forced herself to smile. “Do I look that shocked?”
“Not shocked.” Alex shook his head. “Sad might be a better word.”
Isabel tried to perk up a little if only for Alex’s benefit. “Well if I am sad it is only because I have gotten you into this mess.”
Again Alex shook his head. “Isabel there was only one person who got me into this and that was me, I choose this…it was the right thing to do.”
Isabel dropped her gaze. “I think you are being too kind as usual Alex. If you hadn’t met me you wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
“And if I hadn’t met you...” Alex lifted Isabel’s chin gently until she was looking at him again. “…then I wouldn’t have met you.”
Isabel couldn’t help herself. She leaned in and gave Alex a gentle kiss on the lips. Almost immediately a connection sprang into life and Isabel felt a tremendous burst of pain and saw a flash of Alex screaming before she pulled away.
“Oh God!” Isabel fought to catch her breath. “Alex what did they do to you?” Isabel felt her tears starting to sting her eyes once again.
It was Alex’s turn to drop his gaze. “They haven’t been torturing me if that is what you are thinking.”
“But the pain?” Isabel cut in. “And the screams?”
Alex lifted his head and almost had a smile on his lips. “They’ve been running tests on me. They started off with the more mundane, non-painful tests like blood and bodily fluids.” Alex blushed at his last comment but continued. “But the colonel came down and said he needed more tests run with faster and more conclusive results. It turned out that what he meant was no anaesthetic or pain killers and the tests became more and more invasive.”
Alex lifted a hand and ran it over his head. “That led to my new look, which wouldn’t have been so bad until they actually started to shave small parts of my head so they could fix wires to help monitor my brain waves and such like.” Alex smiled. “I’m pleased to report that despite many years of comments to the contrary from Maria I have, indeed, got a brain. Please tell her that when you see her.”
Alex suddenly went wide-eyed. “This is a dream!” He stated in awe. “You’re dream walking me right now…I didn’t think…” Alex trailed off.
Isabel tightened her grip on Alex. “We wanted to check you were alright. We wanted to let you know we are going to get you out of here.”
“Did Max and Michael get away ok?” Alex asked.
Isabel nodded and smiled. “Thanks to you.”
“Are Liz and Maria alright?” Alex suddenly looked concerned. “Maria didn’t hurt either of them did she?”
Isabel shook her head while still smiling. “She came very close but Liz managed to calm her down.”
There was a momentary pause in the conversation.
“We’re going to get you out of here, you know that right?” Isabel needed Alex to understand he wasn’t alone despite his current predicament.
“I know.” Alex nodded. “But it will defeat the object if you guys get caught trying to get me out of here.”
“What are you suggesting?” Isabel frowned. “That we leave you here?”
Alex looked directly at Isabel. “That is exactly what I am saying.” Isabel went to pull away while she was shaking her head but Alex managed to hold her close. “Iz, you have to understand. The guy who runs this place is called Colonel Matthews. He’s a complete nutcase who thinks aliens are running around Roswell.” Seeing Isabel’s look Alex continued. “I mean I know they are and you know they are but he has no real proof so for him to believe it makes him a nutcase.”
Isabel shook her head firmly. “I don’t care what you say or what your logic is I am not leaving you in here…I won’t.”
“Then fine.” Alex tried to soften his stance. “Tell the sheriff, tell your parents…in fact tell anyone who will listen. All they are going to find is a normal high school student being held against his will by this deranged airman.”
Isabel dropped her head. “We don’t know where you are.” She whispered. She looked up again to see Alex suddenly looking forlorn.
“Damn!” Alex said despondently. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Did you get a look at where they took you?” Isabel asked hopefully.
Alex shook his head. “They had a hood over my head and I had to lie down in the back of the SUV. The only thing I can tell you was it didn’t take long to get here.”
Isabel forced herself to perk up again. “Well that’s neither here nor there. We have another couple of ideas on the go so we will have you out of here sooner rather than later.”
“Well if you say so then I will believe it.” Alex smiled.
Alex suddenly turned serious. “You’d better go, let the others know what is happening.” He said ruefully. “Plus I need to get my beauty sleep.” Alex gestured towards his face. “Now more than ever.”
“Trust me.” Isabel leaned in and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. “You’ll do for me.”
“What?” Alex asked in disbelief.
Isabel shrugged. “I’m simply giving you warning that when we get you out of here you will be the talk of the town. All the girls will be chasing after you when you are able to regale them with stories of kidnapping and heroic escapes.”
“And you’re warning me?” Alex echoed Isabel’s words.
Isabel smiled. Her words were having the desired effect. “And I am warning you that any of them will have to get past me first if they want to get to you.”
Alex smiled. “I like the sound of that.”
Both fell silent again as they found their time together was coming to an end.
“You know we are coming for you right?” Isabel questioned.
“I know.” Alex nodded. “I wouldn’t have given myself up if I didn’t think you were coming to get me. And Iz, don’t forget this isn’t some big alien hunt. This is just…”
“…some nut job, I know thanks Alex.” Isabel gave Alex a reassuring smile.
Isabel mentally shook her head. She had come to comfort Alex but it had ended up the other way round. This young man just went higher and higher in her estimation and it only strengthened her resolve to get him home safely. “So we’re still on for our date when you get home?”
Alex looked shocked at Isabel’s words. “It’s a date now?”
Isabel shrugged. “I think we need to kick it up to a date so I can stamp my mark on you. Keep the other girl’s away.”
Alex didn’t care if Isabel was only saying these things to bolster his hope of getting free as well as taking his mind of his current situation…it was still wonderful to hear.
Isabel slowly reached up and cupped his face. “I think you already know I’m not very experienced at these intimate moments, I haven’t had a lot of practice but I need you to know I think about you all of the time and I’m not going anywhere.”
Alex smiled and nodded. “And I think we both know I have been thinking about you for quite sometime but I won’t expand on that comment as we both know there are anti-stalking laws in New Mexico. Both Alex and Isabel smiled at his joke comment. “I’ll see you soon Isabel.”
Isabel smiled and nodded. A moment later she was gone.
To be continued…
“Alex?” Isabel called a second time. Again there was no reply.
Isabel placed her hand in front of the lock and with a small burst of power the door swung open. Certain aspects of this dream were unlike anything she had encountered before but others had remained the same. It seemed her abilities were still working which allowed her to enter the locked cell.
As she slowly moved across the cubicle to the bed she saw a more noticeable movement from under the sheet. Isabel began to doubt herself as she knew Alex was over six feet tall but the body of whoever was under the sheet was coiled so small and so tight it could almost have been a child under there.
“Alex?” Isabel asked a third time.
“Go away Isabel.” A broken voice barely whispered. “Please go away.”
Isabel felt her body start to shake as her worst nightmare was confirmed. “Alex please let me see you. I’m here to help you.”
“Isabel I don’t want you here…now please go before they come back.” Alex pulled the sheet tighter around his bent body.
“Alex why won’t you let me help you?” Isabel dropped to her knees beside the bed. “I only want to check you are OK and to help get you out of here.”
“I can’t have you see me like this.” Alex said after a long pause. “You need to stay away from me so they won’t come looking for you.”
“Alex you need to stop worrying about other people and let us worry about you.” Isabel reached over to make contact with his cloaked body but he pulled away from her touch.
Alex, despite his weaken state, became agitated. “Isabel I have asked you to leave. I want you to go now…just leave me alone!”
Isabel stood up, unsure what to make of Alex’s outburst. She understood that he was under a great deal of stress and she couldn’t imagine what he had been through but why was he so against her seeing him?
Suddenly Isabel’s own temper started to rise as she finally understood what was going on. She dropped back to her knees this time placing a firm hand on Alex’s body that was still hidden under the sheet. Alex moved again but this time Isabel held her hand in place. “I know what is going on here Alex and I won’t allow it.” She said firmly. “You’re already sacrificed yourself once for us and I am not going to let you do it again.”
“Isabel this is hard enough for me as it is without you interfering.” He said resolutely. “Please don’t make this any more difficult.”
“I won’t.” Even though Alex couldn’t see her Isabel shook her head. “I won’t let you do this alone. I’m not leaving here until you let me see you…until you tell me why you won’t let me help.”
“Because I’m scared!” Alex cried as he threw back the sheet. “Is that a good enough reason for you?”
Alex’s sudden movement caused Isabel to fall back onto the floor from where she had been kneeling. As she looked at Alex she could see he had managed to sit himself up on the bed and that was when she finally got a proper look at her beloved boy.
There were tears running down his cheeks and he had a look of utter defeat on his face. Isabel was so fixed on Alex’s face that it was only after a few moments that she began to register the difference in his appearance. His hair had been cut to a close crop and parts of the side of his head had been shaved completely. From what she could see he was naked from the waist up and she could see various bruises and abrasions covering his body.
Isabel realised quickly that she needed to reassure Alex. She needed him to understand that there was no shame in what he was feeling and that she was there for him no matter what.
“You silly boy.” She said softly as she lifted herself to her feet. “Of course you’re scared…so am I.”
Alex dropped his gaze at her words. “I didn’t want you to see me like this.” He murmured.
As tears threatened to fall down her face Isabel fought to keep it together for Alex’s sake. She sat on the edge of the bed, wrapped her arms around Alex and pulled him close. There was no reaction from Alex for a moment but slowly Isabel could feel his arms enclose around her and hold her tight. She then felt Alex’s body shake with tears as he let go of all that he had been holding in.
“I’m here for you sweetie.” Isabel managed to let out as she continued to fight her own tears. “We’re going to get you out and we are going to bring you home.”
They sat like this for several minutes. Isabel simply rocked Alex gently as she stroked the back of his head. Alex merely held on with what little strength he had as he continued to cry. After a while Alex’s tears began to die down and eventually he released his tight grip on Isabel but continued to have a loose hold on his beautiful companion. He leaned back slightly so he could look at her face.
“Am I that messed up?” Alex asked with a slight smile.
Isabel was surprised by Alex’s change in demeanour but she soon realised she shouldn’t have been. Humour was Alex’s defence mechanism so now that they were past the awkward stage Alex was going to be lifting the mood.
“Why would you say that?” Isabel forced herself to smile. “Do I look that shocked?”
“Not shocked.” Alex shook his head. “Sad might be a better word.”
Isabel tried to perk up a little if only for Alex’s benefit. “Well if I am sad it is only because I have gotten you into this mess.”
Again Alex shook his head. “Isabel there was only one person who got me into this and that was me, I choose this…it was the right thing to do.”
Isabel dropped her gaze. “I think you are being too kind as usual Alex. If you hadn’t met me you wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
“And if I hadn’t met you...” Alex lifted Isabel’s chin gently until she was looking at him again. “…then I wouldn’t have met you.”
Isabel couldn’t help herself. She leaned in and gave Alex a gentle kiss on the lips. Almost immediately a connection sprang into life and Isabel felt a tremendous burst of pain and saw a flash of Alex screaming before she pulled away.
“Oh God!” Isabel fought to catch her breath. “Alex what did they do to you?” Isabel felt her tears starting to sting her eyes once again.
It was Alex’s turn to drop his gaze. “They haven’t been torturing me if that is what you are thinking.”
“But the pain?” Isabel cut in. “And the screams?”
Alex lifted his head and almost had a smile on his lips. “They’ve been running tests on me. They started off with the more mundane, non-painful tests like blood and bodily fluids.” Alex blushed at his last comment but continued. “But the colonel came down and said he needed more tests run with faster and more conclusive results. It turned out that what he meant was no anaesthetic or pain killers and the tests became more and more invasive.”
Alex lifted a hand and ran it over his head. “That led to my new look, which wouldn’t have been so bad until they actually started to shave small parts of my head so they could fix wires to help monitor my brain waves and such like.” Alex smiled. “I’m pleased to report that despite many years of comments to the contrary from Maria I have, indeed, got a brain. Please tell her that when you see her.”
Alex suddenly went wide-eyed. “This is a dream!” He stated in awe. “You’re dream walking me right now…I didn’t think…” Alex trailed off.
Isabel tightened her grip on Alex. “We wanted to check you were alright. We wanted to let you know we are going to get you out of here.”
“Did Max and Michael get away ok?” Alex asked.
Isabel nodded and smiled. “Thanks to you.”
“Are Liz and Maria alright?” Alex suddenly looked concerned. “Maria didn’t hurt either of them did she?”
Isabel shook her head while still smiling. “She came very close but Liz managed to calm her down.”
There was a momentary pause in the conversation.
“We’re going to get you out of here, you know that right?” Isabel needed Alex to understand he wasn’t alone despite his current predicament.
“I know.” Alex nodded. “But it will defeat the object if you guys get caught trying to get me out of here.”
“What are you suggesting?” Isabel frowned. “That we leave you here?”
Alex looked directly at Isabel. “That is exactly what I am saying.” Isabel went to pull away while she was shaking her head but Alex managed to hold her close. “Iz, you have to understand. The guy who runs this place is called Colonel Matthews. He’s a complete nutcase who thinks aliens are running around Roswell.” Seeing Isabel’s look Alex continued. “I mean I know they are and you know they are but he has no real proof so for him to believe it makes him a nutcase.”
Isabel shook her head firmly. “I don’t care what you say or what your logic is I am not leaving you in here…I won’t.”
“Then fine.” Alex tried to soften his stance. “Tell the sheriff, tell your parents…in fact tell anyone who will listen. All they are going to find is a normal high school student being held against his will by this deranged airman.”
Isabel dropped her head. “We don’t know where you are.” She whispered. She looked up again to see Alex suddenly looking forlorn.
“Damn!” Alex said despondently. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Did you get a look at where they took you?” Isabel asked hopefully.
Alex shook his head. “They had a hood over my head and I had to lie down in the back of the SUV. The only thing I can tell you was it didn’t take long to get here.”
Isabel forced herself to perk up again. “Well that’s neither here nor there. We have another couple of ideas on the go so we will have you out of here sooner rather than later.”
“Well if you say so then I will believe it.” Alex smiled.
Alex suddenly turned serious. “You’d better go, let the others know what is happening.” He said ruefully. “Plus I need to get my beauty sleep.” Alex gestured towards his face. “Now more than ever.”
“Trust me.” Isabel leaned in and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. “You’ll do for me.”
“What?” Alex asked in disbelief.
Isabel shrugged. “I’m simply giving you warning that when we get you out of here you will be the talk of the town. All the girls will be chasing after you when you are able to regale them with stories of kidnapping and heroic escapes.”
“And you’re warning me?” Alex echoed Isabel’s words.
Isabel smiled. Her words were having the desired effect. “And I am warning you that any of them will have to get past me first if they want to get to you.”
Alex smiled. “I like the sound of that.”
Both fell silent again as they found their time together was coming to an end.
“You know we are coming for you right?” Isabel questioned.
“I know.” Alex nodded. “I wouldn’t have given myself up if I didn’t think you were coming to get me. And Iz, don’t forget this isn’t some big alien hunt. This is just…”
“…some nut job, I know thanks Alex.” Isabel gave Alex a reassuring smile.
Isabel mentally shook her head. She had come to comfort Alex but it had ended up the other way round. This young man just went higher and higher in her estimation and it only strengthened her resolve to get him home safely. “So we’re still on for our date when you get home?”
Alex looked shocked at Isabel’s words. “It’s a date now?”
Isabel shrugged. “I think we need to kick it up to a date so I can stamp my mark on you. Keep the other girl’s away.”
Alex didn’t care if Isabel was only saying these things to bolster his hope of getting free as well as taking his mind of his current situation…it was still wonderful to hear.
Isabel slowly reached up and cupped his face. “I think you already know I’m not very experienced at these intimate moments, I haven’t had a lot of practice but I need you to know I think about you all of the time and I’m not going anywhere.”
Alex smiled and nodded. “And I think we both know I have been thinking about you for quite sometime but I won’t expand on that comment as we both know there are anti-stalking laws in New Mexico. Both Alex and Isabel smiled at his joke comment. “I’ll see you soon Isabel.”
Isabel smiled and nodded. A moment later she was gone.
To be continued…
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StargazerUK
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Into the Lion's Den Pt18. A/I & C/C 17-May-04
Chapter 18
Maria nearly had a heart attack when Isabel suddenly lurched forward into a sitting position on the couch.
Within a split second Liz was at Isabel’s side. “Isabel, are you alright? Did you get through to Alex?”
Isabel couldn’t catch her breath for a moment so all she could do in reply to Liz’s questions was nod, which she did vigorously. Gradually her heart rate began to slow and her lungs began to cope with her desperate need for air. After a few short moments to compose herself she was ready to speak. “Alex is fine. Well sort of.” She corrected herself. “He’s being held somewhere close but he’s not sure where, he never got a chance to see where they were taking him.”
“But he’s alive and you spoke to him. That’s a good thing right?” Maria turned to Liz for confirmation.
Liz nodded. “Of course it is.” She smiled at her friend before turning her attention back to Isabel. “How was he? Did he look alright?” Liz had a million and one questions which she knew Isabel couldn’t possibly answer. “Please just tell me you told him we are coming for him.”
Isabel smiled and nodded in an attempt to reassure her two friends. “Alex was exactly how you would expect him to be. He spent more time reassuring me than I was able to reassure him. He spent more time asking how Max and Michael are than he did answering my questions about how he is.”
Liz let out an audible sigh. “Well at least we know he’s alive and doing well under the circumstances.” Liz took hold of one of Isabel’s hands. “How are you Isabel? Can we get you anything? Max told me it can take a lot of effort to dream walk someone.”
Isabel smiled and shook her head. “I’m fine Liz…really. I’m just relieved I was able to get through to Alex so I could speak to him. I think I’ve had an adrenalin rush from being able to see him so I’ll be fine for now. It’ll probably hit me later but hopefully by that time we will have Alex home with us.”
Suddenly Liz’s cell phone began to ring making all three girl’s jump. Maria was nearest the phone so she leapt to her feet and made a grab for it. “Hello?”
Liz and Isabel watched in silence while Maria continued to look pensive as she listened attentively to whoever was speaking on the other end of the line. “But what shall I tell Isabel?” She suddenly asked. “You said you would come back for her.”
In a flash Isabel was up onto her feet as she pulled the phone from Maria’s grasp. “What’s happening?” Isabel demanded. “What’s going on?”
Liz ignored Isabel’s demands on the phone and turned a stunned looking Maria towards her as she tried to find out what was happening. “Maria what did they tell you? Are they following the car?”
Maria struggled to block out Isabel, who was barked questions down the phone, as she thought about what she had just been told. “That was Max. He said that a large SUV, the same kind as the one they stole, has just arrived at the sheriffs’ office. Two men got out and ran inside. A few moments later they came back out and have just left in both cars.”
Maria having imparted her information and Liz having gleaned the news she was after both turned their attention back to Isabel. It appeared that she had calmed down from her original state but she was clearly still agitated. “But what if you need me there?” Isabel repeated. “I could borrow mom’s car and you could give me directions.”
It appeared that Isabel’s offer was being shot down in flames as her face showed signs of defeat. She then began to impart the information she had gathered from her dream walk to let both boys know Alex was alive if not well. The fact that they had failed in one of their few lines of investigation meant it was now more important than ever for the boys to find Alex with their plan to follow the stolen car. “Are you sure I can’t help you.” Isabel pressed.
Again both girls watched as Isabel had to stand and listen while Max made his case for her to stay where she was. She was clearly still unhappy but her resolve appeared to be giving way. “So you’ll call as soon as you have any more news? Promise me that you will call Max…OK, we’ll be here.” Isabel looked crest fallen as she closed the phone and ended the call.
She turned away from her two friends for a moment as it was apparent she was fighting back tears. Maria reached for some tissues while Liz stepped up beside the tall girl as she watched her wiping away at her eyes. “Isabel come and sit down with us. I’m sure the boys know what they’re doing and they’ll call us as soon as they have any more news.”
Isabel nodded slightly as she turned and sat down, following Liz’s instructions obediently. She took the offered tissue from Maria and wiped at her moist eyes before blowing her nose. “I’m sorry but I had set my heart on going with them. I told Alex I would come for him and I don’t want him to think I lied to him or that I have abandoned him.”
“Of course not.” Liz rubbed Isabel’s back as she tried to reassure her friend. “Alex would never think that and neither would we.”
“Isabel you can’t be in two places at once.” Maria added. “You did your part by dream walking Alex and checking he is alright. More than that you reassured him he’s not on his own and you told him that we are coming for him. That’s a darn sight more than me or Liz are doing at the moment but you don’t see us going all postal.”
Isabel couldn’t help but let out a little laugh at Maria’s final comment. “The difference is I had to tell Alex I was waiting for him to come home but he already knows you two will be waiting to welcome him back with open arms. It’s the fact that he has you two that is helping him get through this. Don’t say you aren’t doing anything because having Alex know you two love him the way you do and the help you are giving me, Max and Michael will be what brings him home safely.”
Both girls were grateful for Isabel’s comforting words.
“Well if we are handing out praise what about you?” Maria questioned. “Love us as he undoubtedly does I think there was only one girl Alex truly wanted to see in his dreams and I am looking at her.”
“Plus we need to keep in mind that getting Alex home will only be half the battle.” Liz cut in. “We all know how brave Alex is but this will test any mans resolve. I think we will have our work cut out when he gets back to make sure he can cope with what has gone on.”
Maria and Isabel both looked at Liz with solemn faces as they listened to her well thought out and heartfelt comments. It was something that sent all three girls into a prolonged silence. Getting Alex home wouldn’t be the end of this.
Max and Michael had sat in silence as they followed the two black SUV’s that were currently thundered further out into the desert. Having informed the girls what they were doing it was now simply a task of following the two air force vehicles until they led to Alex. Or at least that was the intended plan. Neither boy wanted to contemplate what they would do next if this didn’t succeed. Having spoken to Isabel briefly they now knew that Alex was unable to help them when it came to finding out his current location…it was now down to them.
“Not too close.” Max spoke slowly and purposefully. Not wishing to anger Michael in their already fraught circumstances.
“I know.” Michael said curtly. He gave a quick glance to his friend beside him and was pleased he hadn’t taken offence at his abruptness. “I should never have brought you guys into this…I should have been able to handle this on my own.”
Max shook his head briefly. “And what were you supposed to do Michael? Just sit there and watch as they took Maria, Liz and who knows who else until they found what they were looking for? I don’t think so. I know it doesn’t feel like it now but you did the right thing.”
Michael sent Max another quick look, this time one of disbelief.
“What I mean is the decision to call me and Alex over rather than let them take Maria was correct.” Max stated. “You knew that you, me and Alex stood a better chance of over powering those men than just you and Maria alone. You at least have to agree with me on that.”
Michael tightened his grip on the steering wheel but begrudgingly nodded in agreement with Max’s logic.
“And Alex’s idea to use himself as a diversion to allow us to get away may not make either of us feel very happy or comfortable at the moment but it was still the right thing to do.” Max continued.
Michael let out a heavy sigh. “Are you telling me you will get any sleep while they still have hold of Alex?” Max never spoke but he didn’t have to, Michael could see it written all over his face. “I didn’t think so.”
“That’s not the point Michael. The point is Alex’s plan worked, we got away. We’re now in a position to find him and bring him home. The fact that they are doing who knows what to him at the moment doesn’t sit any better with me than it does with you but we both know there is more to this than just us now. Whether we like it or not this involves all six of us.” Max said resolutely. “I started this by saving Liz. You called me and Alex so they wouldn’t go after Maria. You’ve seen how Isabel is around Alex these last few days and we both know she is going to tear us a new one when she gets her hands on us for not having her with us now. Why? Because she feels something for Alex the same way I feel about Liz and you feel about Maria. It’s no longer a case of thinking about the three of us, we have to think about the six of us. We’ll do everything we can to get Alex back and once we do we can return to a normal life. Or what passes for a normal life in Roswell, alien capital of the world.” He quickly added.
“So you have no regrets about telling Liz our secrets.” Michael asked softly.
“Do you mean aside from the fact it meant I could save her life?” Max smiled briefly. “My only regret would be if Liz regretted it. I am aware that I only showed Liz who I really am because I had to save her life but it doesn’t mean I hadn’t dreamt about that moment a thousand times before…under different circumstances of course.”
“Isabel seems pretty taken with Alex.” Michael stated out of the blue.
“Yes she does.” Max nodded. “Just as you seem taken with Maria.” Max watched as Michael started to fidget in his seat but it was noticeable he didn’t contest that statement. “We had a choice to make Michael, one that would alter our lives forever. We could either continue the life we had keeping ourselves to ourselves or we could take the chance to let someone in and actually live a little.”
“And look what happened.” Michael said mournfully. “Is this worth the price of living a little?”
Max dropped his head. “That’s not a decision we can make. Only Alex, Liz and Maria can answer that.”
“They’re slowing down.”
Michael’s words sent Max’s head snapping back up as he looked at the scene ahead. Confusion started to build as they were hoping to follow the cars to some sort of compound or base but there didn’t seem to be any buildings or encampments anywhere to be seen. There were still miles and miles of desert off into the distance with only a build up of rocks and hills to either side. Realisation hit Max. “Go back it’s a set up!” He shouted.
Michael brought the car to a shuddering halt before throwing it into reverse gear and floored the gas peddle. He looked over his shoulder to watch where he was going but as they started to move backwards a large truck pulled round from a position behind a rock outcrop and blocked their escape route. At the same time the two SUV’s, which the boys had been following, had turned round and were now advancing on the stalled car, blocking their way ahead.
“What shall we do?” Michael questioned, his heart pounding in his chest.
“Keep your hands where they can see them.” Max said calmly. “We don’t want to give them any excuse for them to get carried away.
Suddenly both side doors were opened and the boys pulled from the car. They we both pushed against the jetta as they were quickly searched before being turned towards the truck that currently sat behind their car. As they watched a familiar figure climbed down from the passenger side of the wagon and slowly approached where they we being held.
With a nod from the senior man the airman who had been holding Max and Michael moved away towards the bag of the lorry, out of sight, leaving the two men alone with their captor. “Mr Evans, Mr Guerin…I think it’s time for us to have a little talk.”
To be continued…
Maria nearly had a heart attack when Isabel suddenly lurched forward into a sitting position on the couch.
Within a split second Liz was at Isabel’s side. “Isabel, are you alright? Did you get through to Alex?”
Isabel couldn’t catch her breath for a moment so all she could do in reply to Liz’s questions was nod, which she did vigorously. Gradually her heart rate began to slow and her lungs began to cope with her desperate need for air. After a few short moments to compose herself she was ready to speak. “Alex is fine. Well sort of.” She corrected herself. “He’s being held somewhere close but he’s not sure where, he never got a chance to see where they were taking him.”
“But he’s alive and you spoke to him. That’s a good thing right?” Maria turned to Liz for confirmation.
Liz nodded. “Of course it is.” She smiled at her friend before turning her attention back to Isabel. “How was he? Did he look alright?” Liz had a million and one questions which she knew Isabel couldn’t possibly answer. “Please just tell me you told him we are coming for him.”
Isabel smiled and nodded in an attempt to reassure her two friends. “Alex was exactly how you would expect him to be. He spent more time reassuring me than I was able to reassure him. He spent more time asking how Max and Michael are than he did answering my questions about how he is.”
Liz let out an audible sigh. “Well at least we know he’s alive and doing well under the circumstances.” Liz took hold of one of Isabel’s hands. “How are you Isabel? Can we get you anything? Max told me it can take a lot of effort to dream walk someone.”
Isabel smiled and shook her head. “I’m fine Liz…really. I’m just relieved I was able to get through to Alex so I could speak to him. I think I’ve had an adrenalin rush from being able to see him so I’ll be fine for now. It’ll probably hit me later but hopefully by that time we will have Alex home with us.”
Suddenly Liz’s cell phone began to ring making all three girl’s jump. Maria was nearest the phone so she leapt to her feet and made a grab for it. “Hello?”
Liz and Isabel watched in silence while Maria continued to look pensive as she listened attentively to whoever was speaking on the other end of the line. “But what shall I tell Isabel?” She suddenly asked. “You said you would come back for her.”
In a flash Isabel was up onto her feet as she pulled the phone from Maria’s grasp. “What’s happening?” Isabel demanded. “What’s going on?”
Liz ignored Isabel’s demands on the phone and turned a stunned looking Maria towards her as she tried to find out what was happening. “Maria what did they tell you? Are they following the car?”
Maria struggled to block out Isabel, who was barked questions down the phone, as she thought about what she had just been told. “That was Max. He said that a large SUV, the same kind as the one they stole, has just arrived at the sheriffs’ office. Two men got out and ran inside. A few moments later they came back out and have just left in both cars.”
Maria having imparted her information and Liz having gleaned the news she was after both turned their attention back to Isabel. It appeared that she had calmed down from her original state but she was clearly still agitated. “But what if you need me there?” Isabel repeated. “I could borrow mom’s car and you could give me directions.”
It appeared that Isabel’s offer was being shot down in flames as her face showed signs of defeat. She then began to impart the information she had gathered from her dream walk to let both boys know Alex was alive if not well. The fact that they had failed in one of their few lines of investigation meant it was now more important than ever for the boys to find Alex with their plan to follow the stolen car. “Are you sure I can’t help you.” Isabel pressed.
Again both girls watched as Isabel had to stand and listen while Max made his case for her to stay where she was. She was clearly still unhappy but her resolve appeared to be giving way. “So you’ll call as soon as you have any more news? Promise me that you will call Max…OK, we’ll be here.” Isabel looked crest fallen as she closed the phone and ended the call.
She turned away from her two friends for a moment as it was apparent she was fighting back tears. Maria reached for some tissues while Liz stepped up beside the tall girl as she watched her wiping away at her eyes. “Isabel come and sit down with us. I’m sure the boys know what they’re doing and they’ll call us as soon as they have any more news.”
Isabel nodded slightly as she turned and sat down, following Liz’s instructions obediently. She took the offered tissue from Maria and wiped at her moist eyes before blowing her nose. “I’m sorry but I had set my heart on going with them. I told Alex I would come for him and I don’t want him to think I lied to him or that I have abandoned him.”
“Of course not.” Liz rubbed Isabel’s back as she tried to reassure her friend. “Alex would never think that and neither would we.”
“Isabel you can’t be in two places at once.” Maria added. “You did your part by dream walking Alex and checking he is alright. More than that you reassured him he’s not on his own and you told him that we are coming for him. That’s a darn sight more than me or Liz are doing at the moment but you don’t see us going all postal.”
Isabel couldn’t help but let out a little laugh at Maria’s final comment. “The difference is I had to tell Alex I was waiting for him to come home but he already knows you two will be waiting to welcome him back with open arms. It’s the fact that he has you two that is helping him get through this. Don’t say you aren’t doing anything because having Alex know you two love him the way you do and the help you are giving me, Max and Michael will be what brings him home safely.”
Both girls were grateful for Isabel’s comforting words.
“Well if we are handing out praise what about you?” Maria questioned. “Love us as he undoubtedly does I think there was only one girl Alex truly wanted to see in his dreams and I am looking at her.”
“Plus we need to keep in mind that getting Alex home will only be half the battle.” Liz cut in. “We all know how brave Alex is but this will test any mans resolve. I think we will have our work cut out when he gets back to make sure he can cope with what has gone on.”
Maria and Isabel both looked at Liz with solemn faces as they listened to her well thought out and heartfelt comments. It was something that sent all three girls into a prolonged silence. Getting Alex home wouldn’t be the end of this.
Max and Michael had sat in silence as they followed the two black SUV’s that were currently thundered further out into the desert. Having informed the girls what they were doing it was now simply a task of following the two air force vehicles until they led to Alex. Or at least that was the intended plan. Neither boy wanted to contemplate what they would do next if this didn’t succeed. Having spoken to Isabel briefly they now knew that Alex was unable to help them when it came to finding out his current location…it was now down to them.
“Not too close.” Max spoke slowly and purposefully. Not wishing to anger Michael in their already fraught circumstances.
“I know.” Michael said curtly. He gave a quick glance to his friend beside him and was pleased he hadn’t taken offence at his abruptness. “I should never have brought you guys into this…I should have been able to handle this on my own.”
Max shook his head briefly. “And what were you supposed to do Michael? Just sit there and watch as they took Maria, Liz and who knows who else until they found what they were looking for? I don’t think so. I know it doesn’t feel like it now but you did the right thing.”
Michael sent Max another quick look, this time one of disbelief.
“What I mean is the decision to call me and Alex over rather than let them take Maria was correct.” Max stated. “You knew that you, me and Alex stood a better chance of over powering those men than just you and Maria alone. You at least have to agree with me on that.”
Michael tightened his grip on the steering wheel but begrudgingly nodded in agreement with Max’s logic.
“And Alex’s idea to use himself as a diversion to allow us to get away may not make either of us feel very happy or comfortable at the moment but it was still the right thing to do.” Max continued.
Michael let out a heavy sigh. “Are you telling me you will get any sleep while they still have hold of Alex?” Max never spoke but he didn’t have to, Michael could see it written all over his face. “I didn’t think so.”
“That’s not the point Michael. The point is Alex’s plan worked, we got away. We’re now in a position to find him and bring him home. The fact that they are doing who knows what to him at the moment doesn’t sit any better with me than it does with you but we both know there is more to this than just us now. Whether we like it or not this involves all six of us.” Max said resolutely. “I started this by saving Liz. You called me and Alex so they wouldn’t go after Maria. You’ve seen how Isabel is around Alex these last few days and we both know she is going to tear us a new one when she gets her hands on us for not having her with us now. Why? Because she feels something for Alex the same way I feel about Liz and you feel about Maria. It’s no longer a case of thinking about the three of us, we have to think about the six of us. We’ll do everything we can to get Alex back and once we do we can return to a normal life. Or what passes for a normal life in Roswell, alien capital of the world.” He quickly added.
“So you have no regrets about telling Liz our secrets.” Michael asked softly.
“Do you mean aside from the fact it meant I could save her life?” Max smiled briefly. “My only regret would be if Liz regretted it. I am aware that I only showed Liz who I really am because I had to save her life but it doesn’t mean I hadn’t dreamt about that moment a thousand times before…under different circumstances of course.”
“Isabel seems pretty taken with Alex.” Michael stated out of the blue.
“Yes she does.” Max nodded. “Just as you seem taken with Maria.” Max watched as Michael started to fidget in his seat but it was noticeable he didn’t contest that statement. “We had a choice to make Michael, one that would alter our lives forever. We could either continue the life we had keeping ourselves to ourselves or we could take the chance to let someone in and actually live a little.”
“And look what happened.” Michael said mournfully. “Is this worth the price of living a little?”
Max dropped his head. “That’s not a decision we can make. Only Alex, Liz and Maria can answer that.”
“They’re slowing down.”
Michael’s words sent Max’s head snapping back up as he looked at the scene ahead. Confusion started to build as they were hoping to follow the cars to some sort of compound or base but there didn’t seem to be any buildings or encampments anywhere to be seen. There were still miles and miles of desert off into the distance with only a build up of rocks and hills to either side. Realisation hit Max. “Go back it’s a set up!” He shouted.
Michael brought the car to a shuddering halt before throwing it into reverse gear and floored the gas peddle. He looked over his shoulder to watch where he was going but as they started to move backwards a large truck pulled round from a position behind a rock outcrop and blocked their escape route. At the same time the two SUV’s, which the boys had been following, had turned round and were now advancing on the stalled car, blocking their way ahead.
“What shall we do?” Michael questioned, his heart pounding in his chest.
“Keep your hands where they can see them.” Max said calmly. “We don’t want to give them any excuse for them to get carried away.
Suddenly both side doors were opened and the boys pulled from the car. They we both pushed against the jetta as they were quickly searched before being turned towards the truck that currently sat behind their car. As they watched a familiar figure climbed down from the passenger side of the wagon and slowly approached where they we being held.
With a nod from the senior man the airman who had been holding Max and Michael moved away towards the bag of the lorry, out of sight, leaving the two men alone with their captor. “Mr Evans, Mr Guerin…I think it’s time for us to have a little talk.”
To be continued…
-
StargazerUK
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 157
- Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 2:01 pm
- Location: London
Into the Lion's Den Pt19. A/I & C/C 24-May-04
Chapter 19
The two boys watched in silence as the young sergeant who had led the kidnapping team from the night before stood before them. Despite his lack of years the youthful airman had a look of composure and self-assurance, which belied his lack of maturity.
“This has been very difficult from beginning to end.” He began. “I don’t think I need to tell you that this should never have taken place and I can only apologise to you for that.”
Max and Michael exchanged brief looks. This wasn’t what they were expecting.
“When I joined the air force I only wanted to serve my country and, if at all possible, see the world. I didn’t sign up to kidnap high school students at gun point or to stand and watch as unauthorised experiments are carried out on young, unsuspecting men who have done nothing wrong.” The sergeant had obviously had time to prepare a speech. “I’m a patriotic man at heart but what has happened here has nothing to do with patriotism or serving my country. I know this won’t mean anything to you but the colonel is a proud and honourable man. I can’t standby and allow him to be judged for making one mistake.”
“A mistake that involved holding us at gun point,” Max cut in. “A mistake that currently has our friend held somewhere against his will.”
“I know.” Fletcher nodded. “And as I stated earlier I am truly sorry.”
“So what happens now?” Michael questioned. “Do we get taken in as well?”
“No.” The sergeant said firmly. “That is not what is going to happen.”
“We won’t go without our friend.” Max said resolutely. “We can’t just walk away while you still have Alex held captive.”
“I didn’t expect anything less.” The sergeant stated. “You’re pretty resourceful boys, getting away from us like you did. Under different circumstances I would ask you how you got out of your handcuffs and then out of a fixed window that only opened three inches…but somehow I don’t think you’d tell me.”
“So will you take us to Alex?” Michael asked tentatively. When the airman shook his head the two boys exchanged another look.
“But you said you knew we wouldn’t leave without Alex.” Max repeated the young airman’s words, his confusion mounting. “Now you are saying you won’t take us to him? I don’t understand.”
Fletcher smiled. “I can’t take you to him as he is already here.”
“Alex is here?” Michael asked incredulously. Both boys set their gaze on the back of the large truck that stood behind their captor.
“Before I give you Mr Whitman back we need to go over a couple of things.” The sergeant suddenly took a step forward. “We need to get a couple of things straight.”
“What sort of things?” Max questioned, not liking the sound of this.
The airman raised his eyes to meet the boys directly. “This has all come about after an order sent out by my colonel. This was an order that, in my opinion, was based on a false assumption, an assumption that should never have been acted upon.”
“But?” Max could sense there was a ‘but’ coming.
“But I am unwilling to let a good mans career come to nothing after one error in judgement.” Fletcher added.
“Error in judgement?” Michael’s anger started to build. “He sent a team of armed men to capture me and then proceeded to threaten the well being of my…of my friend.” Michael faltered for a moment before carrying on. “Then you forced me, at gun point, to call my friends over so you could capture them as well. Finally we have still yet to see what state Alex is in. I don’t even want to think about what you have been doing to him.”
“I know.” The airman said for a second time. “And I don’t expect you to understand my reasons but if I let this become official not only is Colonel Matthew’s career over but he loses all of his benefits, which not only affects him but his family as well. He has kids your age to think about and he can’t afford to lose his pension now.”
“It’s a pity he didn’t think about that before all of this got started.” Max said ruefully.
“Listen to me.” The sergeant’s voice suddenly became firm. “This isn’t a debate. I know we have done wrong but if I can protect my superior I will. I’ve already had him removed from command through ill health and I promise he will never command a frontline unit again. His days in charge of men on active duty are at an end. I don’t expect you to agree with my actions but I am trying to allow a once good man to bow out with a little dignity.”
“The same dignity you have afforded Alex? Some how I don’t thing they are one and the same thing.” Max eyed the young airman for a moment before continuing. “Well if this isn’t a debate why don’t you tell us what is going to happen. We’re keen to get our friend back and the longer you leave it the worse it is for him.”
“Fine.” Fletcher nodded. “This is what is going to happen. Colonel Matthews has been removed from command and will be retired out of the air force due to ill health. After speaking to the sections senior officer it has been decided the less people that know about the colonel’s claims the better. That’s the only reason for the decision to retire the colonel without any further action, to save face. All documentation to do with this operation has already been incinerated and I know I can trust my men not to let this go any further. The rest is down to you. You can either accept that this has all been a mistake and try to forget about it while getting on with your lives or you can try to kick up a fuss and make this public knowledge but I can assure you there will be nothing to back up your story. For every witness to our actions that you bring forward I will produce ten who will swear we were else where at the time. It’s not something I am proud of but I have been ordered to make this all go away.”
Again Max and Michael exchanged looks. As terrible as the things done to Alex undoubtedly were it would suit everyone if this simply went away. It was obvious why the air force wanted to deny all knowledge but if anything the young students had more to lose. The last thing they needed was to draw attention to themselves.
After a quick nod from Michael Max looked back at the sergeant. “How do we know this will be an end to it?”
Max and Michael watched as the airman turned and approached the cab of the truck. Opening the passenger door he reached in and pulled out a bag. Closing the door again he moved back in front of the two boys and threw the bag, which Max caught.
Looking down Max could see he was holding a clear plastic bag that held some kind of clothing. He couldn’t quite make out what it was at first but the colouring seemed familiar. Slowly realisation dawned on the young man with regards to what he currently held in his hands…Liz’s bloodied Crashdown uniform.
“I believe this might be what set this whole chain of events in motion.” The sergeant’s words cut in on Max’s thoughts. “Without the contents of that bag all we are left with is hearsay.”
“And you will just let us go?” Max questioned.
The airman shrugged. “I know something odd happened on that day in Roswell but to make the leap of faith it would require for me to believe that there are aliens running around town healing gun shot victims at random is just too much. I ask you…aliens on the loose in Roswell! Have you ever heard such a ridiculous thing?”
Both boys forced a smile onto their lips hoping to offer some credence to Fletchers comments. As the airmen turned towards the back of the truck he was still talking to himself as he walked away. “I mean if you were an alien would you live in Roswell, alien capital of the world? That’s like being a Turkey and choosing to celebrate thanksgiving…it would only end in tears.”
As they watched, Max and Michael could see the sergeant disappear behind the back of the truck. A moment later he returned followed by two airmen who were currently holding Alex upright.
“What did you bastards do to him?” Michael cried as he moved to take hold of Alex. “He’s a high school student who was minding his own business and you do this to him?”
“As I said before I am truly sorry.”
By now Michael had looped one of Alex’s arms up over his shoulder so he could help support his friend. Max came to the opposite side and copied Michael’s actions. “Where are his clothes?” Max questioned having discovered that Alex was draped in only a sheet.
“His clothes were taken away for testing at the lab.” The airmen confirmed. “By now they will have been destroyed as part of my order to wipe all evidence of this encounter.”
“I hope you are very proud of yourself.” Michael spate out.
The young sergeant looked at the three boys for a moment with a look of genuine remorse on his face but a moment later it was gone as he kicked into action. “Let’s get out of here.” He shouted, which his men understood to be an order.
While still holding closely to Alex the two boys watched as the two SUV’s turned round and continued on their original course followed closely by the truck that had been blocking their escape route.
After helping Alex into the back of the jetta Michael turned for home while Max tried to check Alex over. “Alex can you hear me?” Max questioned.
“Hey mom, just give me ten more minutes.” Alex suddenly mumbled. “I have plenty of time and I promise I won’t be late for school.”
“Alex, it’s me Max can you hear me?” Max pressed.
“Max? Oh no!” Alex exclaimed loudly. “I’m dreaming about the wrong Evans. I want to dream about Isabel not Max.”
“That’s our Alex.” Max gave a quick smile towards Michael as they neared the city limits. “I’ll call the girls and let them know Alex is safe and that we have him.”
All three girls hadn’t stopped pacing since Max had called. After the initial burst of relief the girl’s had all allowed themselves a little cry as the full effects of what had occurred finally hit home.
Once they were recomposed they set about getting things ready for Alex’s return until they found there wasn’t anything to prepare. They’d already agreed that they would put Alex up in Isabel’s room, they couldn’t very well leave him on the couch in the den after all he had been through.
At one point Maria asked if she should boil some water but once Liz pointed out that Alex wasn’t having a baby they had tried to calm themselves and settle down around the kitchen table.
That had led them to where they were now, pacing round the kitchen, waiting for their friend. As they heard the front door open they all darted for the hallway to meet the returning boys. As the three of them came scrambling down the hall towards the front door they were brought to a crashing halt by the sight of Max coming in and closing the door behind him.
“Max what are you doing?” Isabel questioned. “Where’s Alex?”
“He’s outside with Michael in the car.” Max said mournfully.
“Then bring him in.” Maria exclaimed. “What are you waiting for?” With that Maria made a move to get past Max but found the young man blocking her path.
“You all just need to relax a moment.” Max held his hands up in front of his chest in a calming gesture as an attempt to easy the rising tension. “You need to listen to me.”
Seeing Max was composed but insistent in his demeanour Maria stepped back, willing to give her young friend a second to explain himself before she ran right through him in order to get to Alex.
“Alex’s is fine…for the most part but I need to get him into bed before I can check him over properly and mend anything seriously wrong with him.” Max stated softly.
“We understand.” Liz nodded slowly. “Isabel said to put Alex in her bed, he’ll be more comfortable there than where he has been staying.”
“Good.” Max smiled. “Now I need you to step back into the kitchen for a few minutes while we get Alex checked over and we can put him at his easy.” Seeing Maria was just about to explode again Max cut in. “They’ve taken his clothes from him and he only has a sheet covering his body. From what I can see he’s in pretty bad shape with bruises and cuts covering most of what I could see. He’s been through so much already but the thing he is most worried about is the three of you seeing him in this state.”
Max’s words brought tears to the girl’s eyes.
“He wants to see all of you but he doesn’t want you seeing him as he looks now.” Max could feel a lump in his throat. “Just give us a few minutes to get him settled and allow me to take care of some of his cuts and scrapes and then you can see him.”
All three girls gave weak smiles and nods in agreement to Max’s request. The girls came in and sat round the table, falling into a sorrowful silence. A moment later they heard the front door open and a moment after that they heard the sound of shuffling feet as the two boys helped Alex inside and up the stairs.
Not a word was spoken by any of the three young women as they waited to hear from Max or Michael. Even though it was now fifteen minutes since the boys had gone upstairs, longer than anyone had expected, no one could bring themselves to talk.
Finally foot steps came quickly down the stairs and Michael appeared in the kitchen doorway, a soft smile played on his lips. “Alex would like to see you now.”
Slowly the girls lifted up onto their feet and moved slowly out into the hallway and up the stairs. Stopping outside the closed bedroom door to Isabel’s room they gave each other a quick smile and nod of encouragement before Liz turned the handle and pushed open the door.
As they stepped inside the scene itself wasn’t too distressful but it wasn’t far from everyone’s mind what Alex must have been through. Alex was sitting up slightly in the bed with the bed clothes coming up to about halfway up his chest. It was apparent that as they entered Alex had been in deep conversation with Max, who was sat on a chair near the window, but now that the girls had arrived he turned his attention to them, smiling as he looked over at them.
“Hi.” Alex said softly as a trademark grin spread across his face. “Normally I would be mortified to have three beautiful women see me in bed like this but on this occasion I am willing to make an exception.”
Liz was the first in the door and the first to approach Alex. She leaned in and gave her friend a brief kiss on the cheek before leaning further in to hug her resting friend. Alex snaked out an arm to wrap around Liz for a brief moment and it became apparent that Liz had started to cry. As she stood up she wiped at her tears and it was clear to see Alex also had tears building.
After Liz Maria stepped forward. As with Liz she first gave Alex a kiss on the cheek before leaning in for a hug. Again tears were evident when the two broke apart and Maria stepped back.
This left Isabel standing awkwardly by the door to her room. She looked like a lost soul as she stood staring at Alex. Her relationship with Alex was not set in stone in the way that Liz and Maria’s was but she clearly had feelings for the young man.
Seeing Isabel’s dilemma Alex decided to act. “I could do with a little company here.” Alex patted the side of the bed with his right hand, indicating for Isabel to join him.
In a flash Isabel was round the bed and she slowly lowered herself down to sit beside Alex, making sure not to lean in too close. No one reacted but everyone knew a huge step had been taken when they watched as Isabel took hold of Alex’s right hand in hers and grasped it firmly when she sat down.
The ice broken everyone noticeably relaxed.
“What I’ll do to be the centre of attention.” Alex joked.
Everyone laughed. “Maybe next time you can dye your hair or get an eyebrow pierced like everyone else.” Michael added.
The room fell into silence. Alex knew that everyone would be treading softly around him for a while and he needed to get things clear as soon as possible. “I’m feeling a little tired but after I’ve had some rest I think we need to talk things through, get things out in the open.”
“Sure.” Liz agreed standing up from where she had been leaning on the side. “We’ll let you sleep and then we can all get something to eat later…maybe order takeout?”
“Sounds great.” Alex nodded.
As the friends filed out Isabel never moved. “Isabel, are you coming?” Max questioned.
Isabel shook her head, not taking her eyes off of where she was holding Alex’s hand. “I’m staying.”
Max watched his sister for a moment before trying again. “I’m sure Alex will be fine and…”
“I said I’m staying.” Isabel repeated, this time she looked up to meet Max’s gaze.
“Ok.” Max nodded and smiled. “We’ll catch you guys later.” With that Max closed the door behind him leaving the young couple alone.
Isabel began to run her hand over Alex’s head, feeling the short cropped hair and patches of shaved head under her finger tips. Alex simply closed his eyes revelling under the young beauties touch.
“Max didn’t fix your hair?” Isabel asked softly.
Alex shook his head slightly while keeping his eyes closed. “He said it would be more your domain. He said you would change anything he did anyway so he might as well just leave it for you to do.”
“Do you mind?” Isabel asked with a gentle smile on her face.
“Help yourself.” Alex uttered in a low voice. He could feel himself drifting off to sleep.
As Isabel sat in the quiet room with Alex’s head now resting in her lap she gentle ran her fingers through his every growing hair, his bald patches long since gone. With each burst of power not only did his hair grow longer and thicker but Alex’s appearance slowly returned to his more usual look. “I’m here for you Alex.” She whispered as she caressed the young mans head. “I won’t let anyone else hurt you...not ever.”
To be continued…
The two boys watched in silence as the young sergeant who had led the kidnapping team from the night before stood before them. Despite his lack of years the youthful airman had a look of composure and self-assurance, which belied his lack of maturity.
“This has been very difficult from beginning to end.” He began. “I don’t think I need to tell you that this should never have taken place and I can only apologise to you for that.”
Max and Michael exchanged brief looks. This wasn’t what they were expecting.
“When I joined the air force I only wanted to serve my country and, if at all possible, see the world. I didn’t sign up to kidnap high school students at gun point or to stand and watch as unauthorised experiments are carried out on young, unsuspecting men who have done nothing wrong.” The sergeant had obviously had time to prepare a speech. “I’m a patriotic man at heart but what has happened here has nothing to do with patriotism or serving my country. I know this won’t mean anything to you but the colonel is a proud and honourable man. I can’t standby and allow him to be judged for making one mistake.”
“A mistake that involved holding us at gun point,” Max cut in. “A mistake that currently has our friend held somewhere against his will.”
“I know.” Fletcher nodded. “And as I stated earlier I am truly sorry.”
“So what happens now?” Michael questioned. “Do we get taken in as well?”
“No.” The sergeant said firmly. “That is not what is going to happen.”
“We won’t go without our friend.” Max said resolutely. “We can’t just walk away while you still have Alex held captive.”
“I didn’t expect anything less.” The sergeant stated. “You’re pretty resourceful boys, getting away from us like you did. Under different circumstances I would ask you how you got out of your handcuffs and then out of a fixed window that only opened three inches…but somehow I don’t think you’d tell me.”
“So will you take us to Alex?” Michael asked tentatively. When the airman shook his head the two boys exchanged another look.
“But you said you knew we wouldn’t leave without Alex.” Max repeated the young airman’s words, his confusion mounting. “Now you are saying you won’t take us to him? I don’t understand.”
Fletcher smiled. “I can’t take you to him as he is already here.”
“Alex is here?” Michael asked incredulously. Both boys set their gaze on the back of the large truck that stood behind their captor.
“Before I give you Mr Whitman back we need to go over a couple of things.” The sergeant suddenly took a step forward. “We need to get a couple of things straight.”
“What sort of things?” Max questioned, not liking the sound of this.
The airman raised his eyes to meet the boys directly. “This has all come about after an order sent out by my colonel. This was an order that, in my opinion, was based on a false assumption, an assumption that should never have been acted upon.”
“But?” Max could sense there was a ‘but’ coming.
“But I am unwilling to let a good mans career come to nothing after one error in judgement.” Fletcher added.
“Error in judgement?” Michael’s anger started to build. “He sent a team of armed men to capture me and then proceeded to threaten the well being of my…of my friend.” Michael faltered for a moment before carrying on. “Then you forced me, at gun point, to call my friends over so you could capture them as well. Finally we have still yet to see what state Alex is in. I don’t even want to think about what you have been doing to him.”
“I know.” The airman said for a second time. “And I don’t expect you to understand my reasons but if I let this become official not only is Colonel Matthew’s career over but he loses all of his benefits, which not only affects him but his family as well. He has kids your age to think about and he can’t afford to lose his pension now.”
“It’s a pity he didn’t think about that before all of this got started.” Max said ruefully.
“Listen to me.” The sergeant’s voice suddenly became firm. “This isn’t a debate. I know we have done wrong but if I can protect my superior I will. I’ve already had him removed from command through ill health and I promise he will never command a frontline unit again. His days in charge of men on active duty are at an end. I don’t expect you to agree with my actions but I am trying to allow a once good man to bow out with a little dignity.”
“The same dignity you have afforded Alex? Some how I don’t thing they are one and the same thing.” Max eyed the young airman for a moment before continuing. “Well if this isn’t a debate why don’t you tell us what is going to happen. We’re keen to get our friend back and the longer you leave it the worse it is for him.”
“Fine.” Fletcher nodded. “This is what is going to happen. Colonel Matthews has been removed from command and will be retired out of the air force due to ill health. After speaking to the sections senior officer it has been decided the less people that know about the colonel’s claims the better. That’s the only reason for the decision to retire the colonel without any further action, to save face. All documentation to do with this operation has already been incinerated and I know I can trust my men not to let this go any further. The rest is down to you. You can either accept that this has all been a mistake and try to forget about it while getting on with your lives or you can try to kick up a fuss and make this public knowledge but I can assure you there will be nothing to back up your story. For every witness to our actions that you bring forward I will produce ten who will swear we were else where at the time. It’s not something I am proud of but I have been ordered to make this all go away.”
Again Max and Michael exchanged looks. As terrible as the things done to Alex undoubtedly were it would suit everyone if this simply went away. It was obvious why the air force wanted to deny all knowledge but if anything the young students had more to lose. The last thing they needed was to draw attention to themselves.
After a quick nod from Michael Max looked back at the sergeant. “How do we know this will be an end to it?”
Max and Michael watched as the airman turned and approached the cab of the truck. Opening the passenger door he reached in and pulled out a bag. Closing the door again he moved back in front of the two boys and threw the bag, which Max caught.
Looking down Max could see he was holding a clear plastic bag that held some kind of clothing. He couldn’t quite make out what it was at first but the colouring seemed familiar. Slowly realisation dawned on the young man with regards to what he currently held in his hands…Liz’s bloodied Crashdown uniform.
“I believe this might be what set this whole chain of events in motion.” The sergeant’s words cut in on Max’s thoughts. “Without the contents of that bag all we are left with is hearsay.”
“And you will just let us go?” Max questioned.
The airman shrugged. “I know something odd happened on that day in Roswell but to make the leap of faith it would require for me to believe that there are aliens running around town healing gun shot victims at random is just too much. I ask you…aliens on the loose in Roswell! Have you ever heard such a ridiculous thing?”
Both boys forced a smile onto their lips hoping to offer some credence to Fletchers comments. As the airmen turned towards the back of the truck he was still talking to himself as he walked away. “I mean if you were an alien would you live in Roswell, alien capital of the world? That’s like being a Turkey and choosing to celebrate thanksgiving…it would only end in tears.”
As they watched, Max and Michael could see the sergeant disappear behind the back of the truck. A moment later he returned followed by two airmen who were currently holding Alex upright.
“What did you bastards do to him?” Michael cried as he moved to take hold of Alex. “He’s a high school student who was minding his own business and you do this to him?”
“As I said before I am truly sorry.”
By now Michael had looped one of Alex’s arms up over his shoulder so he could help support his friend. Max came to the opposite side and copied Michael’s actions. “Where are his clothes?” Max questioned having discovered that Alex was draped in only a sheet.
“His clothes were taken away for testing at the lab.” The airmen confirmed. “By now they will have been destroyed as part of my order to wipe all evidence of this encounter.”
“I hope you are very proud of yourself.” Michael spate out.
The young sergeant looked at the three boys for a moment with a look of genuine remorse on his face but a moment later it was gone as he kicked into action. “Let’s get out of here.” He shouted, which his men understood to be an order.
While still holding closely to Alex the two boys watched as the two SUV’s turned round and continued on their original course followed closely by the truck that had been blocking their escape route.
After helping Alex into the back of the jetta Michael turned for home while Max tried to check Alex over. “Alex can you hear me?” Max questioned.
“Hey mom, just give me ten more minutes.” Alex suddenly mumbled. “I have plenty of time and I promise I won’t be late for school.”
“Alex, it’s me Max can you hear me?” Max pressed.
“Max? Oh no!” Alex exclaimed loudly. “I’m dreaming about the wrong Evans. I want to dream about Isabel not Max.”
“That’s our Alex.” Max gave a quick smile towards Michael as they neared the city limits. “I’ll call the girls and let them know Alex is safe and that we have him.”
All three girls hadn’t stopped pacing since Max had called. After the initial burst of relief the girl’s had all allowed themselves a little cry as the full effects of what had occurred finally hit home.
Once they were recomposed they set about getting things ready for Alex’s return until they found there wasn’t anything to prepare. They’d already agreed that they would put Alex up in Isabel’s room, they couldn’t very well leave him on the couch in the den after all he had been through.
At one point Maria asked if she should boil some water but once Liz pointed out that Alex wasn’t having a baby they had tried to calm themselves and settle down around the kitchen table.
That had led them to where they were now, pacing round the kitchen, waiting for their friend. As they heard the front door open they all darted for the hallway to meet the returning boys. As the three of them came scrambling down the hall towards the front door they were brought to a crashing halt by the sight of Max coming in and closing the door behind him.
“Max what are you doing?” Isabel questioned. “Where’s Alex?”
“He’s outside with Michael in the car.” Max said mournfully.
“Then bring him in.” Maria exclaimed. “What are you waiting for?” With that Maria made a move to get past Max but found the young man blocking her path.
“You all just need to relax a moment.” Max held his hands up in front of his chest in a calming gesture as an attempt to easy the rising tension. “You need to listen to me.”
Seeing Max was composed but insistent in his demeanour Maria stepped back, willing to give her young friend a second to explain himself before she ran right through him in order to get to Alex.
“Alex’s is fine…for the most part but I need to get him into bed before I can check him over properly and mend anything seriously wrong with him.” Max stated softly.
“We understand.” Liz nodded slowly. “Isabel said to put Alex in her bed, he’ll be more comfortable there than where he has been staying.”
“Good.” Max smiled. “Now I need you to step back into the kitchen for a few minutes while we get Alex checked over and we can put him at his easy.” Seeing Maria was just about to explode again Max cut in. “They’ve taken his clothes from him and he only has a sheet covering his body. From what I can see he’s in pretty bad shape with bruises and cuts covering most of what I could see. He’s been through so much already but the thing he is most worried about is the three of you seeing him in this state.”
Max’s words brought tears to the girl’s eyes.
“He wants to see all of you but he doesn’t want you seeing him as he looks now.” Max could feel a lump in his throat. “Just give us a few minutes to get him settled and allow me to take care of some of his cuts and scrapes and then you can see him.”
All three girls gave weak smiles and nods in agreement to Max’s request. The girls came in and sat round the table, falling into a sorrowful silence. A moment later they heard the front door open and a moment after that they heard the sound of shuffling feet as the two boys helped Alex inside and up the stairs.
Not a word was spoken by any of the three young women as they waited to hear from Max or Michael. Even though it was now fifteen minutes since the boys had gone upstairs, longer than anyone had expected, no one could bring themselves to talk.
Finally foot steps came quickly down the stairs and Michael appeared in the kitchen doorway, a soft smile played on his lips. “Alex would like to see you now.”
Slowly the girls lifted up onto their feet and moved slowly out into the hallway and up the stairs. Stopping outside the closed bedroom door to Isabel’s room they gave each other a quick smile and nod of encouragement before Liz turned the handle and pushed open the door.
As they stepped inside the scene itself wasn’t too distressful but it wasn’t far from everyone’s mind what Alex must have been through. Alex was sitting up slightly in the bed with the bed clothes coming up to about halfway up his chest. It was apparent that as they entered Alex had been in deep conversation with Max, who was sat on a chair near the window, but now that the girls had arrived he turned his attention to them, smiling as he looked over at them.
“Hi.” Alex said softly as a trademark grin spread across his face. “Normally I would be mortified to have three beautiful women see me in bed like this but on this occasion I am willing to make an exception.”
Liz was the first in the door and the first to approach Alex. She leaned in and gave her friend a brief kiss on the cheek before leaning further in to hug her resting friend. Alex snaked out an arm to wrap around Liz for a brief moment and it became apparent that Liz had started to cry. As she stood up she wiped at her tears and it was clear to see Alex also had tears building.
After Liz Maria stepped forward. As with Liz she first gave Alex a kiss on the cheek before leaning in for a hug. Again tears were evident when the two broke apart and Maria stepped back.
This left Isabel standing awkwardly by the door to her room. She looked like a lost soul as she stood staring at Alex. Her relationship with Alex was not set in stone in the way that Liz and Maria’s was but she clearly had feelings for the young man.
Seeing Isabel’s dilemma Alex decided to act. “I could do with a little company here.” Alex patted the side of the bed with his right hand, indicating for Isabel to join him.
In a flash Isabel was round the bed and she slowly lowered herself down to sit beside Alex, making sure not to lean in too close. No one reacted but everyone knew a huge step had been taken when they watched as Isabel took hold of Alex’s right hand in hers and grasped it firmly when she sat down.
The ice broken everyone noticeably relaxed.
“What I’ll do to be the centre of attention.” Alex joked.
Everyone laughed. “Maybe next time you can dye your hair or get an eyebrow pierced like everyone else.” Michael added.
The room fell into silence. Alex knew that everyone would be treading softly around him for a while and he needed to get things clear as soon as possible. “I’m feeling a little tired but after I’ve had some rest I think we need to talk things through, get things out in the open.”
“Sure.” Liz agreed standing up from where she had been leaning on the side. “We’ll let you sleep and then we can all get something to eat later…maybe order takeout?”
“Sounds great.” Alex nodded.
As the friends filed out Isabel never moved. “Isabel, are you coming?” Max questioned.
Isabel shook her head, not taking her eyes off of where she was holding Alex’s hand. “I’m staying.”
Max watched his sister for a moment before trying again. “I’m sure Alex will be fine and…”
“I said I’m staying.” Isabel repeated, this time she looked up to meet Max’s gaze.
“Ok.” Max nodded and smiled. “We’ll catch you guys later.” With that Max closed the door behind him leaving the young couple alone.
Isabel began to run her hand over Alex’s head, feeling the short cropped hair and patches of shaved head under her finger tips. Alex simply closed his eyes revelling under the young beauties touch.
“Max didn’t fix your hair?” Isabel asked softly.
Alex shook his head slightly while keeping his eyes closed. “He said it would be more your domain. He said you would change anything he did anyway so he might as well just leave it for you to do.”
“Do you mind?” Isabel asked with a gentle smile on her face.
“Help yourself.” Alex uttered in a low voice. He could feel himself drifting off to sleep.
As Isabel sat in the quiet room with Alex’s head now resting in her lap she gentle ran her fingers through his every growing hair, his bald patches long since gone. With each burst of power not only did his hair grow longer and thicker but Alex’s appearance slowly returned to his more usual look. “I’m here for you Alex.” She whispered as she caressed the young mans head. “I won’t let anyone else hurt you...not ever.”
To be continued…
-
StargazerUK
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 157
- Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 2:01 pm
- Location: London
Into the Lion's Den Pt20. A/I & C/C 31-May-04
Chapter 20
As Alex tried to open his eyes he found he couldn’t. His natural reaction was to shy away from the bright light he was currently bathed in. Allowing himself a moment to adjust to the glare he wondered if Isabel had opened the blinds, filling her bedroom in late afternoon sunlight.
Finally, forcing himself into a sitting position, he opened his eyes and discovered he had to catch his breath. “I don’t understand.” He whispered. Alex looked around the familiar room and as understanding hit him he felt his heart split in two. It seemed that just as he was starting to feel confident about leaving his troubles of the last twenty-four hours behind he was back in the holding cell at the air force base.
“Was I dreaming?” Alex asked himself as he stood up from his bed. He had to make a grab for the sheet that had been draped over his body. It almost fell to the floor when he got up, which would have left him totally naked. Alex wrapped the sheet tightly around his body as he took a step towards the Perspex door. His mind was moving at a million miles an hour but he was struggling to make any sense of his location.
Looking down at his battered and bruised body he could feel the aches and pains that went hand in hand with such a sight. He raised his hand to his head and tried to run his fingers through his hair but he had none. It was back to a short crop with several shaved areas, as before.
Slowly, as things began to fall into place, his situation was becoming clear. He dropped to his knees when the full force of his current predicament hit him and he realised he was back where he started. As tears began to run down his face he heard the door at the far end of the corridor open and he watched as several men in air force fatigues came towards him.
“Mr Whitman, I’m glad to see you are up.”
As Alex lifted his head he could see Colonel Matthews stand before him on the opposite side of the transparent door. Just behind him on his left was Sergeant Fletcher while two other airmen were standing on the right.
“I thought you let me go.” Alex barely managed to whisper.
“Let you go?” The colonel asked in surprise. “Why on earth would I let you go? I haven’t even begun to carry out the tests I want…you have a very long way to go yet young man before we can even consider letting you go.”
Alex allowed his weary head to drop again. He found his will to fight was seeping through every pore, his desire to carry on was simply leaching away. He tried to concentrate his mind on the dream walk and Isabel’s visit. Just thinking about the beautiful, young woman who consumed his every thought helped his spirits lift even if it did nothing to aid his worn out state.
“I think it’s time we step up the pace sergeant. Let’s crack on with these tests and find out what is so special about this young man.” The colonel ordered.
As Alex lifted his head to look at the colonel he found he had to look away and blink several times as he was sure he was now hallucinating. When he looked back the sight he thought he saw the first time was still there. Shaking his head he looked again but nothing had changed. Standing off to the side, behind sergeant Fletcher, was Isabel…and she was smiling.
Finally, when Alex fixed his gaze on the vision that was Isabel, he watched her take a step forward, her eyes solely fixed on him. “I told you I wouldn’t let anyone or anything hurt you.” Isabel said confidently to the dishevelled young man. “You didn’t doubt me did you?”
As Alex watched Isabel turned to the men at her side. “I don’t want you here…go away!”
Alex stared in disbelief as the four airmen simply disappeared. With a wave of her hand the locked cell door swung open and Isabel stepped inside until she was at his side. “I don’t think you want to be wearing a sheet when we go out for our date. We need something more appropriate.”
Again, with a wave of her hand, Isabel transformed the sheet that Alex had been draped in. With the aid of his rescuer Alex lifted himself to his feet and discovered he was dressed in warm and comfortable hiking gear. His hands automatically moved to his head where he felt his usual thick, abundant hair.
“I don’t understand.” Alex whispered, repeating his words from a few moments ago.
Isabel simply smiled. “Now to finish. If we have hiking clothes I think we need better surroundings then this.” With a final wave of her hand Isabel turned the brilliant white cell complex into a forest scene with a small lake surrounded as far as the eyes could see by woodland.
Alex’s brain was finally catching up with what was happening but it still didn’t make it any less wondrous. “You’re dream walking me! I wasn’t back in my cell…I was having a nightmare.”
Isabel nodded. “As you lay beside me I could tell you weren’t dreaming peacefully and I meant it when I said I am here for you…that I wouldn’t let anything hurt you.”
A smile slowly spread across Alex’s face. “So I’m asleep in your bed back at your house?”
“Yes.” Isabel smiled. “We’re both curled up on my bed sleeping while Max, Michael, Liz and Maria are standing guard downstairs. You’re perfectly safe.”
Alex hadn’t realised that as he stood up Isabel had taken hold of his hand. Now that he was aware of it he didn’t want to let go. He slowly turned to look at the scenery Isabel had created to put him at his ease and it was truly breathtaking. “Why here?” Alex asked softly.
Isabel shrugged, feeling slightly self-conscious. “When I have time on my own I like to go stargazing. I always find it so relaxing and comforting. As I was looking for somewhere to take you that is as faraway as possible from a holding cell in a hidden air force base I came up with this…don’t you like it?”
“Oh no.” Alex shook his head vigorously. “I love it, especially as you are here.”
Isabel blushed and dropped her gaze.
Not wishing to make Isabel feel uncomfortable Alex looked to quickly change the subject. “How long can we stay here?”
Isabel lifted her gaze and smiled softly. “As long as you want. Well…as long as you are asleep anyway.” She quickly added
Alex led Isabel over to a large rock that sat just off to the side of the path they had been standing on. As they sat down Alex tightened his grip on Isabel’s hand. “So you can just change dreams at will?”
“Pretty much.” Isabel nodded. “It’s not something I do very often. If I do go dream walking I normally just go to observe, not to interfere.”
“Unlike today?” Alex questioned.
“Well I couldn’t very well leave you in the middle of a nightmare now could I?” Isabel added, somewhat defensively.
“I know.” Alex agreed quickly. “I didn’t mean to imply you were wrong to do what you did, I am very pleased you came in and saved me.” Alex was pleased when his words appeared to appease Isabel’s hurt feelings. “In fact can I go on record as saying you have my full permission to visit me in my dreams at anytime? especially if I am having a nightmare.”
“Be careful what you wish for.” Isabel whispered gently.
Alex gave Isabel his 1000watt smile at her little comment.
The two friends settled down together as they watched the beauty of nature in silence, Isabel having succeeded in taking Alex as faraway from his earlier nightmare as was possible.
“Well?” Maria asked as Max stepped into the kitchen.
“Well they are both asleep.” Max said. Reporting on his visit to check on how Alex and Isabel were doing. “Alex is in the bed and Isabel is sort of lying beside him.”
“Why the look?” Liz questioned the odd look that currently sat on a face she knew so well.
“It’s just strange.” Max raised his eyebrows and scratched his head. “They both appear to be smiling.”
A couple of hour’s later footsteps were heard coming down from upstairs. As the four friends came in from the family room they found Isabel helping herself to a drink from the fridge.
“Hi Isabel. How are you?” Max questioned his sister.
Isabel finished her drink and placed the glass on the side before turning towards her friends with a broad smile. “I’m good. More to the point Alex is doing better. I think the rest has helped and he looks more like his old self.”
“Thanks to you and Max.” Liz cut in.
Isabel shrugged. “I think it was more Max’s doing than mine. All I did was fix his hair.” Surprisingly Isabel stepped forward and pulled her brother into a hug. “Thanks Max for taking care of all of Alex’s cuts and bruises.”
“Not a problem.” Max smiled as his sister stepped back from their hug. “Michael and I were telling Liz and Maria that we managed to repair all the outward signs of Alex’s incarceration. We helped him take a shower and as you know I left you to sort out his hair.”
“For which both Alex and I thank you.” Isabel joked. “How are you feeling after healing Alex?”
“I’m fine.” Max nodded. “I was a little tired but we have just been sitting quietly for the last few hours waiting for you guys to wake up so I have had time to recover.”
“Wake up?” Isabel repeated Max’s words and she flushed slightly, realising they knew she had been lying down next to Alex.
“Sorry, that was my fault.” Maria cut in. “I kept badgering Michael and Max so that one of them would go and check how you were doing.”
“Alex was having a nightmare and I couldn’t leave him in there alone so I dream walked him to help him out.” Isabel explained hurriedly.
“No one is prying or questioning your actions Isabel.” Liz tried to reassure her friend. “We’re just glad you are both OK.”
At Liz’s comforting words Isabel allowed herself to relax. The friends slowly moved to the kitchen table and sat down.
“Where’s Alex?” Michael questioned.
“He’s taking a shower.” Isabel relied.
“Another one?” Michael asked in surprise. “We helped him shower when we got back a few hours ago.”
“I know.” Isabel nodded as a solemn look spread across her beautiful face. “Alex’s nightmare was about being back at the holding cell. They were just about to start experimenting on him again.”
“It’s going to take a little while to make sure he is completely over all of this.” Liz said mournfully. “If he feels the need to shower a lot it might indicate he feels dirty somehow.”
“What can we do to help?” Maria asked with concern in her voice.
Liz turned to her friend and tried to offer a comforting smile. “I just think we need to be there for him. For whatever he needs.” Liz turned to Isabel. “I think we just need to continue the good work Isabel has already started by stopping Alex’s nightmare.”
The sound of a door closing and footsteps moving down the stairs brought everyone’s attention to the kitchen door that led out into the hallway. As they watched they could hear Alex’s approach and the relief was almost audible as the form of Alex appeared in the doorway, looking much like his normal self.
“Hey guys.” Alex smiled. “Sorry I took so long.”
Maria quickly ran forward and pulled her tall friend into a hug. “Good to have you home.” As Maria stepped back she turned to Isabel. “Good work on the hair Isabel.”
As Alex moved towards the table he exchanged a brief hug with Liz before sitting down next to Isabel. As with before the friends watched silently as Isabel casually took hold of Alex’s hand in hers and held it tightly.
Alex looked around the room for a few silent moments as he regarded his friends. He knew he had some explaining to do but he also knew his friends were not going to rush him. “Did someone mention takeout?”
To be continued…
As Alex tried to open his eyes he found he couldn’t. His natural reaction was to shy away from the bright light he was currently bathed in. Allowing himself a moment to adjust to the glare he wondered if Isabel had opened the blinds, filling her bedroom in late afternoon sunlight.
Finally, forcing himself into a sitting position, he opened his eyes and discovered he had to catch his breath. “I don’t understand.” He whispered. Alex looked around the familiar room and as understanding hit him he felt his heart split in two. It seemed that just as he was starting to feel confident about leaving his troubles of the last twenty-four hours behind he was back in the holding cell at the air force base.
“Was I dreaming?” Alex asked himself as he stood up from his bed. He had to make a grab for the sheet that had been draped over his body. It almost fell to the floor when he got up, which would have left him totally naked. Alex wrapped the sheet tightly around his body as he took a step towards the Perspex door. His mind was moving at a million miles an hour but he was struggling to make any sense of his location.
Looking down at his battered and bruised body he could feel the aches and pains that went hand in hand with such a sight. He raised his hand to his head and tried to run his fingers through his hair but he had none. It was back to a short crop with several shaved areas, as before.
Slowly, as things began to fall into place, his situation was becoming clear. He dropped to his knees when the full force of his current predicament hit him and he realised he was back where he started. As tears began to run down his face he heard the door at the far end of the corridor open and he watched as several men in air force fatigues came towards him.
“Mr Whitman, I’m glad to see you are up.”
As Alex lifted his head he could see Colonel Matthews stand before him on the opposite side of the transparent door. Just behind him on his left was Sergeant Fletcher while two other airmen were standing on the right.
“I thought you let me go.” Alex barely managed to whisper.
“Let you go?” The colonel asked in surprise. “Why on earth would I let you go? I haven’t even begun to carry out the tests I want…you have a very long way to go yet young man before we can even consider letting you go.”
Alex allowed his weary head to drop again. He found his will to fight was seeping through every pore, his desire to carry on was simply leaching away. He tried to concentrate his mind on the dream walk and Isabel’s visit. Just thinking about the beautiful, young woman who consumed his every thought helped his spirits lift even if it did nothing to aid his worn out state.
“I think it’s time we step up the pace sergeant. Let’s crack on with these tests and find out what is so special about this young man.” The colonel ordered.
As Alex lifted his head to look at the colonel he found he had to look away and blink several times as he was sure he was now hallucinating. When he looked back the sight he thought he saw the first time was still there. Shaking his head he looked again but nothing had changed. Standing off to the side, behind sergeant Fletcher, was Isabel…and she was smiling.
Finally, when Alex fixed his gaze on the vision that was Isabel, he watched her take a step forward, her eyes solely fixed on him. “I told you I wouldn’t let anyone or anything hurt you.” Isabel said confidently to the dishevelled young man. “You didn’t doubt me did you?”
As Alex watched Isabel turned to the men at her side. “I don’t want you here…go away!”
Alex stared in disbelief as the four airmen simply disappeared. With a wave of her hand the locked cell door swung open and Isabel stepped inside until she was at his side. “I don’t think you want to be wearing a sheet when we go out for our date. We need something more appropriate.”
Again, with a wave of her hand, Isabel transformed the sheet that Alex had been draped in. With the aid of his rescuer Alex lifted himself to his feet and discovered he was dressed in warm and comfortable hiking gear. His hands automatically moved to his head where he felt his usual thick, abundant hair.
“I don’t understand.” Alex whispered, repeating his words from a few moments ago.
Isabel simply smiled. “Now to finish. If we have hiking clothes I think we need better surroundings then this.” With a final wave of her hand Isabel turned the brilliant white cell complex into a forest scene with a small lake surrounded as far as the eyes could see by woodland.
Alex’s brain was finally catching up with what was happening but it still didn’t make it any less wondrous. “You’re dream walking me! I wasn’t back in my cell…I was having a nightmare.”
Isabel nodded. “As you lay beside me I could tell you weren’t dreaming peacefully and I meant it when I said I am here for you…that I wouldn’t let anything hurt you.”
A smile slowly spread across Alex’s face. “So I’m asleep in your bed back at your house?”
“Yes.” Isabel smiled. “We’re both curled up on my bed sleeping while Max, Michael, Liz and Maria are standing guard downstairs. You’re perfectly safe.”
Alex hadn’t realised that as he stood up Isabel had taken hold of his hand. Now that he was aware of it he didn’t want to let go. He slowly turned to look at the scenery Isabel had created to put him at his ease and it was truly breathtaking. “Why here?” Alex asked softly.
Isabel shrugged, feeling slightly self-conscious. “When I have time on my own I like to go stargazing. I always find it so relaxing and comforting. As I was looking for somewhere to take you that is as faraway as possible from a holding cell in a hidden air force base I came up with this…don’t you like it?”
“Oh no.” Alex shook his head vigorously. “I love it, especially as you are here.”
Isabel blushed and dropped her gaze.
Not wishing to make Isabel feel uncomfortable Alex looked to quickly change the subject. “How long can we stay here?”
Isabel lifted her gaze and smiled softly. “As long as you want. Well…as long as you are asleep anyway.” She quickly added
Alex led Isabel over to a large rock that sat just off to the side of the path they had been standing on. As they sat down Alex tightened his grip on Isabel’s hand. “So you can just change dreams at will?”
“Pretty much.” Isabel nodded. “It’s not something I do very often. If I do go dream walking I normally just go to observe, not to interfere.”
“Unlike today?” Alex questioned.
“Well I couldn’t very well leave you in the middle of a nightmare now could I?” Isabel added, somewhat defensively.
“I know.” Alex agreed quickly. “I didn’t mean to imply you were wrong to do what you did, I am very pleased you came in and saved me.” Alex was pleased when his words appeared to appease Isabel’s hurt feelings. “In fact can I go on record as saying you have my full permission to visit me in my dreams at anytime? especially if I am having a nightmare.”
“Be careful what you wish for.” Isabel whispered gently.
Alex gave Isabel his 1000watt smile at her little comment.
The two friends settled down together as they watched the beauty of nature in silence, Isabel having succeeded in taking Alex as faraway from his earlier nightmare as was possible.
“Well?” Maria asked as Max stepped into the kitchen.
“Well they are both asleep.” Max said. Reporting on his visit to check on how Alex and Isabel were doing. “Alex is in the bed and Isabel is sort of lying beside him.”
“Why the look?” Liz questioned the odd look that currently sat on a face she knew so well.
“It’s just strange.” Max raised his eyebrows and scratched his head. “They both appear to be smiling.”
A couple of hour’s later footsteps were heard coming down from upstairs. As the four friends came in from the family room they found Isabel helping herself to a drink from the fridge.
“Hi Isabel. How are you?” Max questioned his sister.
Isabel finished her drink and placed the glass on the side before turning towards her friends with a broad smile. “I’m good. More to the point Alex is doing better. I think the rest has helped and he looks more like his old self.”
“Thanks to you and Max.” Liz cut in.
Isabel shrugged. “I think it was more Max’s doing than mine. All I did was fix his hair.” Surprisingly Isabel stepped forward and pulled her brother into a hug. “Thanks Max for taking care of all of Alex’s cuts and bruises.”
“Not a problem.” Max smiled as his sister stepped back from their hug. “Michael and I were telling Liz and Maria that we managed to repair all the outward signs of Alex’s incarceration. We helped him take a shower and as you know I left you to sort out his hair.”
“For which both Alex and I thank you.” Isabel joked. “How are you feeling after healing Alex?”
“I’m fine.” Max nodded. “I was a little tired but we have just been sitting quietly for the last few hours waiting for you guys to wake up so I have had time to recover.”
“Wake up?” Isabel repeated Max’s words and she flushed slightly, realising they knew she had been lying down next to Alex.
“Sorry, that was my fault.” Maria cut in. “I kept badgering Michael and Max so that one of them would go and check how you were doing.”
“Alex was having a nightmare and I couldn’t leave him in there alone so I dream walked him to help him out.” Isabel explained hurriedly.
“No one is prying or questioning your actions Isabel.” Liz tried to reassure her friend. “We’re just glad you are both OK.”
At Liz’s comforting words Isabel allowed herself to relax. The friends slowly moved to the kitchen table and sat down.
“Where’s Alex?” Michael questioned.
“He’s taking a shower.” Isabel relied.
“Another one?” Michael asked in surprise. “We helped him shower when we got back a few hours ago.”
“I know.” Isabel nodded as a solemn look spread across her beautiful face. “Alex’s nightmare was about being back at the holding cell. They were just about to start experimenting on him again.”
“It’s going to take a little while to make sure he is completely over all of this.” Liz said mournfully. “If he feels the need to shower a lot it might indicate he feels dirty somehow.”
“What can we do to help?” Maria asked with concern in her voice.
Liz turned to her friend and tried to offer a comforting smile. “I just think we need to be there for him. For whatever he needs.” Liz turned to Isabel. “I think we just need to continue the good work Isabel has already started by stopping Alex’s nightmare.”
The sound of a door closing and footsteps moving down the stairs brought everyone’s attention to the kitchen door that led out into the hallway. As they watched they could hear Alex’s approach and the relief was almost audible as the form of Alex appeared in the doorway, looking much like his normal self.
“Hey guys.” Alex smiled. “Sorry I took so long.”
Maria quickly ran forward and pulled her tall friend into a hug. “Good to have you home.” As Maria stepped back she turned to Isabel. “Good work on the hair Isabel.”
As Alex moved towards the table he exchanged a brief hug with Liz before sitting down next to Isabel. As with before the friends watched silently as Isabel casually took hold of Alex’s hand in hers and held it tightly.
Alex looked around the room for a few silent moments as he regarded his friends. He knew he had some explaining to do but he also knew his friends were not going to rush him. “Did someone mention takeout?”
To be continued…